Rise of the Bow Hero
by Godreal
Summary: He was lazy, didn't cared much about anything, not even living his life just surviving each day. Now survival was the foremost thing in his mind in order to live, in a world that for all intents, and purposes should only exist behind a screen or on paper... AU. SI/OC.
1. Another World: Legendary What?

**A/N**: So this is my first time posting a fanfic, I have written a few of them but this is my first time actually putting one out here.

This fanfic is based on the Rising of the Shield Hero universe, although this will be slight AU diverging slightly from canon in the beginning, and since my OC who is loosely based on myself is summoned in Itsuki place this will have some butterfly effect on canon, it will still more or less follow the story line until a certain point before shooting into a completely different direction, fair warning and all.

Also since the story is both based on the canon universe and in my own ideas, a lot of places, characters, general concepts and rules will be of my own creation, or interpretation.

Another fair warning, my character will make some references to a lot of other universes, some subtle, some not so much.

I accept all kinds of constructive criticism that lets me improve the quality of this fanfic, also take in consideration that English is not my native language so, I do apologize in advance for any errors in spelling or grammar, although, I will try to improve in both fronts.

**Disclaimer**:I do not own Rising of the Shield Hero or any of the characters, I also, do not own any of the other mentioned franchises, I do however lay claim to my own characters.

* * *

**Chapter 1. Another World: Legendary What?**

In another place, in another time, four people were summoned into a different world, a different reality, with one sole purpose to save it from complete annihilation… These people were called the four legendary heroes.

But among them, one shined far more than the others… This Hero carried no weapon. Unlike the other three he wielded a shield, something that could hardly be called a weapon... After all the only thing that a shield was good for was to protect, and protect he did… He, who was hated more than anyone, who was despised simply for being chosen by fate, who was entrusted with an impossible mission, and tasked with facing immeasurable odds, rose to the challenge... That was the rise of the shield hero… and this, is not that story…

Because in another place, in another time, instead of the bow hero being someone, who's sense of justice and pride blind him from his duty, another was chosen… Someone that by all rights should never have been picked… Someone who as far as he was concerned - things like multi-universe theory were just that, a theory, and concepts like reincarnation were better left to those who believe in them… This person, who in his life hardly ever wielded a weapon, was picked to wield one. With a complete average fate before him, was chosen for something greater… Summoned to be the hero he never wanted or was meant to be… His name was Takuma Ryou, who for better or for worse would herald the tides of change… This was the rise of the bow hero… And this is his story…

Another day, different events but the same monotony of life for the past one and half year… These, were the thoughts that echoed inside Ryou's head, as he laid in bed listening to music. Some opening from an anime that he couldn't be bother to remember. Long, were the days where his music library was composed of only metal, and rock now-a-days the only thing in his smart phone were anime music: openings, endings or just some original sound track.

Turning his head to look at the clock that was on the bedside table, it showed that it was a quarter to seven.

"'Five hours and fifteen minutes till the end of my day off, huh" He commented with annoyance. It had come and gone in a blink of an eye, without doing anything productive as most of his off days tend to go, not like his working days were any better, if he were to be completely honest with himself. But he did have stuff to do, like calling his sister to see how she was doing, and he did have to go outside, since his cigarette pack was on its last legs, and no amount of godly intervention would make him get up from bed earlier then he had to, just to buy tobacco before work. Besides, at the time that he normally got up the sun would still be a couple of hours from showing, and that would mean a twenty minutes' drive to the nearest gas station, the only place open at that hour and very much in the opposite direction from his work.

With strength he hardly had, Ryou finally heaved himself into a sitting position, picking his smart-phone, finger scrolling down his contact list, far too long in comparison to the numbers he actually used not counting birthday, and Christmas messages that he sent once a year. Finally stopping on the contact he wanted, with two light taps the call was underway. The phone ringed a couple of times, while he fought to pick everything he needed and stuff it in his side bag. Finally, a voice greeted from the other side.

"Helloes!" The receiver said with excitement oozing from her voice.

"Sup shrimp?" Ryou questioned, while searching his desktop desk trying to find the infernal house keys, that had a habit of disappearing into another dimension whenever they left his hand.

"Hi Big Brother! You will never guess what happen?!" His younger sister asked, and he could almost picture his sister hooping from one leg into the other. Finally, after raising the keyboard, the infernal keys were found, and after stuffing them in the bag he was out of his room.

"What happen?" The older Brother questioned, while he fumbled with the keys in one hand to lock the door.

"We are going on vacation next weekend! To Canada for two weeks." She exclaimed, and he finally understood the reason behind her excitement, she, like himself, had never left the country and the few vacations that they had, back when they lived in the same house, where always to the countryside, far away to be called vacations, but close enough that the trip could be made in a couple of hours.

"Well that is pretty cool, but be careful not to be eaten by a bear even if you don't have much to offer in terms of sustenance, being all skin and bones!" Ryou teased, knowing full well that statement was more than enough to set her off, and exactly has predicted the response was less then kind.

"You are one to talk, you stupid, fat, ugly, idiot of a brother!" She snapped, and had anyone else been hearing their conversation, they might have thought that she had really been angry, but knowing her, Ryou knew, at the very worst, she was just annoyed.

"I find it quite ironic that you can call me both skinny, and fat in the same sentence." He joked, that was something she had begun to call him a few years back for whatever reason, and like many other things about is sister, had no logic to it. Finally, coming to the street, he noted that there were a lot of people out and about, truly the sign that summer was upon them, since in any other season there were far less people who would leave the house, unless strictly necessary, the temperature would have seen to that.

"Yeah, well you are so stupid that you can be both fat, and skinny at the same time." Once again, his sister made no sense what-so-ever. The sun was already more then halfway in the sky, orange hues starting to appear on the horizon. Crossing the street, he continued his trip to the coffee shop, hoping to finally get the source of one of his addictions.

"But seriously now, be careful and listen to our aunt... You can be quite the airhead, and don't bother denying it." He warned, since he knew full well how she could be sometimes, getting lost in her thoughts, just like Ryou himself.

"Okay, okay, don't worry or your hair will be all grey before you hit thirty." Now was his sister turn to joke, but he knew the message had been received. Taking another turn at the end of the street, the coffee shop, the only one near that was open on a Sunday, finally came into view.

"Believe it or not, I actually take some of my duties as an older brother semi-seriously, and that includes worrying about you." Ryou said, in a mocking tone, even if he did worry about her, she was his last true direct family after all, even if he knew his sister was well looked after.

"Pfff semi-seriously, righttt…" She laughed, and that put a small smile on his face, knowing that she was doing well, probably much better than he was.

"I will come to see you Thursday after work, maybe get some dinner or late lunch okay?" He questioned. He did want to see his sister before she left on vacation, and it had been a while since he actually spent time with her.

"Okay, I will let aunt know, and is everything alright with you? Any news to share like a girlfriend or something?" She asked, and although the question had been asked offhandedly, he knew that now was her turn to worry about him, young she may be at fourteen, but stupid his sister, definitely was not.

"No, nothing new, everything is the same, work, work, and some more work, and no there is no new girl just like the last five times you asked." Wondering why was it, that his sister who as far as he knew, had never been in a relationship, was now so worried about is love life, or lack of it, off all the things. Entering the coffee shop, that contrary to the amount of people outside might indicate, was quite empty. Ryou quickly walked to the counter, and made is request for the cigarette pack, and for a coffee. Caffeine, is other addiction that he could not live without.

"Be careful, if you keep this up people might assume other things about you, brother." She teased with a laugh.

"Let people assume what they want, its not like I care." Was his slightly annoyed reply, not at people assuming whatever, but at her for saying it. Paying for the expense, he picked his coffee and made his way outside, sitting on the first free table he could see, so that he could smoke the last cigarette on is old pack.

"Yeah, you never really did care about what other people thought of you, did you." That had been a statement, not a question, made on a more somber tone after a slight pause. He knew she was not talking about his previous response, she had been referring to something else in the past, but this, almost threaded into territory that he had no wish to revisit, so he quickly attempted to steer the conversation away from that topic.

"Yeah, I'm that kind of guy after all." He joked, though his tone had clearly force, and he wondered, if is sister had picked up on his uneasiness through the phone.

"Yup, you are. So, Thursday after-noonish...?" And it had been apparent that she had, since his sister had let the topic drop. Lightning the cigarette, he breath it in, letting the relaxing sensation fill his body before replying.

"Yeah, I will call you before I leave, so you can get ready." Before taking a few more sips of his coffee.

"Okay, see you Thursday then, take care!" Her high-pitch voice went back to normal, so things were good.

"Yeah, you take care of yourself too shrimp." And that was that, with a light tap of his finger the call was over, and he finally took notice of the group of teens that were sitting across from him. Quite noisy teens he added, as an after thought. Not wanting to spend more time than necessary, listening to the world ending woes of a group of teenagers, his sister had a free pass, she was family, these guys not so much. So, he quickly finished the coffee, put on his ear-buds, and went on his way back home.

At the sound of music, he began to wonder what would he have for dinner, but rapidly made his decision to settle for the barbecue pizza still in is fridge, that would be both, quick and wouldn't involve much work. After that he could go watch some anime, there was still the third season of Sword Art Online to see, that had been on is watch list for a while, same for Steins Gate 0.

So entrenched was he in his thoughts, that he forgot to take out one of his ear buds as he reached the crosswalk, and that, might have prevented the sequence of events that would come to pass next.

The sun had been low, so any driver coming would have a hard time seeing anyone on the street, of course that had been no excuse to drive above the speed limit in such conditions, but Ryou hadn't even bothered to look, and that had been his second mistake, he would later consider.

The only warnings that he had, came as a flash of something on the corner of his vision, and a slightly familiar sensation of dread that locked is body in place. Having only time to turn his head a little, since what he knew, was coming, was already on top of him. The only thoughts he had, before darkness claimed him, were that it was bigger than last time, and was coming way to fast, the sound of something heavy hitting another thing, did reach his ears, but by then, he might has well been on the other end of a pitch black tunnel.

* * *

The first thing that Ryou realized, was that it was dark, far darker than any place he had ever been before, that, and the fact that he couldn't feel anything besides his own thoughts.

It took a little bit to re-collect himself, and to understand that he had in fact, for the second time in his life, been hit by a car or whatever it was that had hit him, it might have been a Jeep or a Truck for all that he saw of it, and he was pretty sure that the first time that it did happen, he had passed out after his head become intimate with the ground. There was no recollection in is memory of being able to think while unconscious, so whatever "this" was, it was definitely new. So he was either in a coma, or worse, and since as far as he was aware, coma patients, didn't have conscious thoughts, like the ones he was having right now, there was no option but to acknowledge the worst-case scenario.

_I__'m dead…_ He thought, numbly. And that was the most likely scenario, or rather the only possible scenario. Although, that didn't make any sense, since the process of thinking was done in the brain, and if he was in fact dead, why was he able to think?

_Can souls think..?_ Not that he particularly believed in souls, reincarnation, paradise or any of that crap. His family had been mostly catholic, believing in a 'benevolent', higher power or being, but he himself believed in science, sure he could give the benefit of the doubt to this, higher power, but calling it 'Benevolent', 'Kind' or whatever attribute people like to associate with it, was crap. If anything, it was a neutral observer, very much like watching fishes in a fish bowl, seeing what they are doing, but very rarely interacting with them. This was of course, coming from the conclusion that creation hadn't spawn from nowhere, there had to be someone or something that had started it all.

_Besides, believing in God didn__'t save either my parents or grandmother…_ He thought bitterly, and perhaps his distaste, and dismissal of the notion that God was, 'Kind', and 'Benevolent', might come partly from there, after all if he was that good, why had his parents and grandmother faced such a horrible end...? Not even questioning how many people starve to death daily in the world.

Thinking about his parents, was something that he, unfortunately did quite often when alone, even if only two and half years had passed since that horrible day, thinking about them always came with all the agonizing pain he felt during that time, and eventually, it would lead his thoughts into everything that he did wrong in is short life. Lots of what-ifs, some small, some great, but at the end of the day, might have changed that outcome. That was probably something everyone thought daily, the what-ifs, the regrets of doing or not doing something. Regret was after-all, a companion he knew, something that prevented him from moving forward with his live because after everything where was he supposed to go from there? After his parents died, his life had almost stopped, and he keep on living but hardly putting one foot in front of the other.

Now that he was most likely dead, Ryou did wonder if his parents had come here to this dark place, where there was nothing but one's own thoughts. That though, did made it a slightly less bitter pill to swallow for some reason.

_Not sure why, it's not like I was doing anything with my life anyway..._ He considered, and that was reality. Every day was the same, waking up, going to work (a shitty one at that), even if the pay was enough for him to live more or less comfortably, yet he never had the motivation to go back to college and finish his degree, instead he spent his free time watching anime, and reading manga, the very few things that still motivate him.

_Looking back, I probably should have invested a little bit in my mental health__…_ He thought with some amusement. His sister had in fact called him boring quite a few times, and from boring to depressed was a very small jump, in this context at least. Thinking about his sister, brought yet another saddening thought.

_She is probably going to cry__…_ Ryou thought sadly. He had never wanted to cause his little sister more pain, their parent's fate had been enough, and even if she was doing better now-a-days, he knew from personal experience, how bad it had hit her.

She would cry, yes, and morn but hopefully she would pick herself back up, keep moving and eventually be happy. His aunt, and uncle would continue to look after her like they did after his parents had died, and if he was being honest, between the two of them she had always been the strong one, and that, he thought, was the best he could hope for.

It was after a while, alone with is thoughts, that he began to hear something or maybe he was feeling it, he couldn't really tell. A soft humming that was definitely not there a moment ago. Wondering about the strange sound or vibration, Ryou definitely notice it was getting louder. That, wasn't the only change to his current situation, it was definitely getting brighter, a mystery on itself, since he was pretty sure that those who were dead, had no eyes. Maybe rather then seeing it, he might have been feeling it.

After a few moments, the humming got so loud Ryou might has well been standing in the engine room of some ship. Eventually, both the humming, and the brightness got so intense that he couldn't even hear himself thinking, and at last he lost all sense of self, engulfed in both a immeasurable light, and a deafening rumbling.

* * *

When he finally regained his senses, he felt like he was floating. Opening his eyes Ryou noted, a myriad of golden lights streaking all around him, and finally coming to the conclusion that, he did have a body 'again' one in a far better condition than he had been expecting.

Turning his body downward, to get a better understanding of what this place was, he had about half a second to close his eyes, as his face planted itself, in a rather spectacular way.

"Ouch! Fuck, that hurt!" He hissed with his hand reaching for his face, until the realization hit him.

_Pain...? Yup, definitely in pain, it hurts... Does this mean I__'m not dead...?_ He wondered, and unfortunately whatever next revelation Ryou was going to reach didn't happen, because a voice that must certainly wasn't his, interrupted those thoughts.

"We… We did it? Success!" The voice shouted, in what appear to be both equal measure of delight, and excitement. After blinking away the pain, Ryou realized that there was something very wrong with what he was seeing. First, were the green lights all around him, next was the strange pentagram or whatever that thing was that was glowing under him, and finally, looking towards where he thought he heard the voice, eyes squinting, he finally was able to see several blurry figures before him, beyond the lights.

The owner of the voice that had spoken before, continue to shout in excitement,"Oh! The summoning was a success."

Finally being able to focus his vision enough, Ryou was able to get a good look at what lay before him. It was a group of people, some looking in awe in is direction, others had their eyes closed and their hands clapped in a praying position, there were some with hoods obscuring their faces, and in front of them stood a man with a tiara or crown in his head, all of them where wearing long green robes with golden trimming.

_What...?_ Was honestly the only thing Ryou could think, extremely confused as he raised himself into a standing position.

"Where am I?" Another voice questioned, and this one, happen to be nearer. Looking down he found the owner rubbing his head, most likely having suffered as gracious as a fall as he had. The person in question appeared to be in is late teens, most likely around the same age as Ryou himself. Hair as long as his own, and wearing a green shirt. The most peculiar thing however, would be what he had attached to his arm, a pentagon made of metal, with a round shining green jewel in the middle.

_That, looks familiar_… But before he could take a closer look, the owner of the previous voice spoke, now identifying the voice with the men with a tiara.

"Ohh brave legendary heroes, please save our world." The man plead clapping his hands in a prayer position. Ryou for his part, could only look stupefied to what lay in front of him, that being some form of witchcraft pentagram that somehow shined and emitted green lights, some random kid with a metal pentagon on is arm, and finally some cultists talking about a summoning. Dry swallowing, he finally found his voice and what came out was…

"What, in the name of the holy fuck is going on? Legendary what!?"

In hindsight, Ryou would later realize, that, hadn't been the best way to start a conversation, cultists or not.


	2. Dream, Reality or a Endless Nightmare

**Chapter 2. Another World: A Dream, Reality or a Endless Nightmare**

"_What in the name of the holy fuck is going on? Legendary what!?"_

Ryou shouted and the people or cultists, or whatever they were, hesitated on what they were going to say next, looking in his direction with wide eyes.

"Excuse me, but like this guy said what the hell is this?" A voice asked from behind him. Ryou turned around, and he saw the owner of the voice. He was tall, taller then Ryou was - another young man, this one with blond hair dressed in a red shirt, face scrunched in confusion. In his grasp, was a staff or a spear… A familiar round jewel engraved in it, only instead of green, like the one in the other young man's object, this one was red.

"I would also like to know that as well." Ryou looked to the side, another person was there, around his height, with black hair, more or less the same size has his own, and that of the young man on the floor. This one was dressed in a blue sport jacket with brown pants. In is hand lay another weapon, this one was clearly a sword with a very identical jewel in it, blue this time. Ryou was about to kindly ask who the hell these guys were, and why were they wielding such weapons, when his brain actually registered that he was grasping something.

It look made of wood, yet felt like metal. Curved and in a pale yellow or stained white color, a string connected both ends that suspiciously looked like small sculpted wings, and the front had a ornamental piece with a now common jewel, this one yellow. It was a bow, he reflected.

_I'm loosing it..._ The now bow wielder thought incredulously, because how had he not noticed until now that in his hand was a weapon, and thinking about it where the hell had it come from.

"I know this must all be very confusing, but please heroes, listen to our story." Once again Ryou focused on the man slash cultist with the tiara on his head. Deciding that listening was the best way to make heads and tails of whatever was going on. The other weapon wielders made their way to his side, including the guy that had been laying on the ground in front of him.

"We used an ancient Ritual to summon you, the four Legendary Heroes to this world." The man explained, and for his part, Ryou could only look incredulously after listening to what had come out of the mans mouth. Either the man was on drugs or bat-shit crazy, or maybe Ryou himself was the crazy one.

"Our world lies on the brink of destruction, please we beg you, help us!" They finished with a bow. Shaking his head in disbelief, because this almost sounded like some RPG introduction, Ryou made a move to call them out on there bullshit, or whatever very bad trip they were having, but was interrupted by the young man standing besides him.

"Well, I guess we could hear you out, at least." Looking to the side, eyebrows raising into his forehead, Ryou had to question the other young man sanity if he was buying this crap.

"I refuse." Came from his other side, followed by another equal statement from the last weapon wielder. At least the other two could see reason, seeing that this whatever it was, had to be nothing more then a bunch of crap made by either,drug addicts, or people that belong in the mental ward.

"We can go back to our own world, right? We can talk after you send us back." The blond man continued.

_Going back to their world..? These guys were actually buying this..?_ Sure there was the lights, and the weapon that had come out of nowhere. But summoned to another world? What was this, some kind of mainstream manga? Lowering his fingers he pinched his leg. The pain bloomed from the spot where he had pinched himself, and it was easy to conclude that this wasn't a dream, not that he had actually thought it was, it was far to real and detailed.

"Don't you guys feel any guilt? Kidnapping us to this place without our consent?" The others were still going with the same notion. They were taking it in stride, and accepting it like it was normal.

"How will you reward us for our hard work? We cant be working for free here..." And that did it, they were all high on something, that had to be it

"Are you guys actually buying all this crap? About summoning, and what-not, why don't we talk about magic while we are on the subject?" Ryou ended with a heavy trace of sarcasm. Because why not magic? It was on par with what they were discussing, was it not? Maybe throw a few unicorns, and talking mushroom in the mix . The others just looked at him, confusion apparent on their faces, like what he had just said had been crazy.

But before he could explode, the main speaker among the crazy, spoke, his voice has shaky has the smile on his face.

"We would like for you heroes to meet is highness, the king of our country Melromarc, however he is currently on another meeting, but he will want an audience with you tomorrow. He will most surely spare no expense in rewarding you heroes for your hard work, be that monetary or knowledge in the ways of magic." The last part was accompanied with a look in his direction. Apparently sarcasm was lost to these people. It was then, that something the man had said registered in his mind.

_Melromarc…_ He had known a place named like that. Both a familiar, and a feeling of dread filled him, has he took a look at his bow. Melromarc… Four Legendary Heroes…

Turning his head sharply to his right, inclining himself to take another look at the 'pentagon' that was strapped to is companion's forearm.

Suspicion turned into something real the moment he realized the 'pentagon', was in fact a shield. But that couldn't be, it just couldn't. This was the kind of thing that only happen in the stupid manga, and anime that he spent way too much time on. Looking up, he noticed that the shield wielder was now looking down at him perplexed, and Ryou could only swallow on his own saliva an ask.

"H-Hey, whats your name?" Voice cracked, and he swallowed again, feeling every hair on his arms standing. The young man in question just pointed at himself, and responded.

"Me? I'm Iwatani Naofumi, what about you?" And the sensation of dread, nearly tripled in sized covering every inch of his body, and fear took hold of is being.

The only thought crossing is mind was...

_No, no, no, no, no fucking way is this real!_ Even as he answered the question, tone hollow, and distant.

"Ryou Takuma"

* * *

Looking in front of the mirror in the personal bathroom, that connect to the room he was suppose to stay this night, Ryou stared in a state of shock. His entire body had been numb, his brain unable to make heads or tails of his current situation, only accepting denial over it all. Amaki Ren, and Kitamura Motoyasu, the Sword and Spear hero respectively. They had introduced themselves after Naofumi, even if it hadn't been needed, as far as he was concerned, he knew their names the moment Naofumi had introduced himself.

He had follow the others until he reach his designated room, barely paying attention to his surroundings. The only thing that he had payed attention to, had been the window that they had come across. Outside the window stood a view that he would never find in his world. Something strait out of fantasy. Medieval buildings stood far into the distance, and beyond them, green plains took over. Mountains he couldn't even begin to identify were painted across the horizon. But even the fantastical view failed to drive reality home.

It couldn't be true. Stuff like this just doesn't happen. How had it happen? Searching his memories he remembered something about the legendary weapons choosing their wielders, choosing them to be heroes.

Him? A hero? The thought was hilarious….so much so, that a slightly hysterical laugh left his mouth gaining in strength until he was doubled over grabbing his sides, tears streaming down his eyes, although if they had been over laughing so much, or the situation itself he couldn't tell.

Cleaning his eyes, he opened the faucet and splash water on his face.

_Okay, okay, so you somehow in the space of a day, more or less went from being an average human being with an average life, to getting run over by a car for the second time, most likely dying in the process, then revived and summoned to fight in some otherworldly fantasy war, that might involve demons and other creatures._ Ryou thought, making an incredulous mental summary of what had happen.

"Well that seems about right… Hahaha." That thought had come out loud, followed by a small laugh cut short by his still hurting sides.

Leaving the bathroom, he finally took a look around his room, it was big, almost half the size of his whole house had been, red curtains embroiled in gold were the first thing that he noticed, after the great size of the room. They covered the bed, exactly what one would expect from the middle-ages, there were a couple of arm chairs surrounding a round wooden table. All in all a completely medieval room, like the ones students would see on school trips if they were to visit old palaces or castles, like the one he was currently in.

Reaching the bed, Ryou laid down adjusting himself with one arm covering his eyes, but he didn't get to delve in his thoughts for more then a second, because the door to his room opened in a grandiose fashion followed by a annoying sound, that Ryou had begun to associate with Motoyasu's voice.

"So, you okay now? You seemed really out of it on the way."

Lifting himself on his elbows, Ryou took in the sight in front of him before responding that yes he had just felt slightly sick. It was Ren that continue, since Motoyasu had seemed to accept his answer, and begun the process of examine every inch of his room.

"Yeah, that tends to happen when you dive in VRMMO for the first time." Shifting his attention towards the sword hero, he couldn't stop is incredulity from showing both on his face and voice.

"You think this is a game?" Now sitting he couldn't help but to think that they couldn't be as dense here, as they had been in the story, after all reality and fiction were very different things.

"Of course it is a game, it as stats, skills and everything what else could it be?" It wasn't the swordsmen that answered now seating in one of the chairs, but Motoyasu. That made him pause, because saying that this was some other world where they had been sent slash reincarnated, didn't sound that much more believable. He was still, after all, trying to wrap his head around everything.

"I honestly don't know…." That had been the honest truth. Having laid back in bed with his arm once again over his eyes.

"Don't worry, its a game, so you just need to increase your level, and your golden." Holding a snort, he couldn't help but to feel amused. That line of thinking had been exactly what caused them to fall behind Naofumi in canon.

"Its not that simple, skill matters just as much." That had been Ren his tone flat, and cold.

"Aren't items, and gear also important in this type of game." He had honestly, not even seen Naofumi entering the room, but that beg the question, why were they camping in his room specifically? Reaching the conclusion that it wasn't something worth pondering on, since he had much more important things to worry about, Ryou decided to ignore their chatter.

_This is real…_ He had read somewhere, that reality was what you perceive it as... If something exists and you can feel and interact with it, then that's most likely real. Those were Ryou thoughts while he lay in a bed that was probably worth more money then he made in a month.

_Congratulations Braniacs…_ He thought sarcastically, with a mental clap towards every single physicist in his old world. Because multi-universe theory was apparently no longer just a theory, and Inter-universe travel was also a thing - one that could apparently be achieved without suffering any damage. His understanding of physics wasn't the best, but he was pretty sure that there was bound to be some very bad consequences if one was to travel between universes, like being shredded to bits, or something among those lines.

_Either that, or reincarnation in some form is a thing, and that…_ He decided was where he draw the line. Because honestly, he had been hit by a car or whatever had hit him, and at the speed it had been traveling, his survival chances had probably been pretty bad. With that in mind either the Legendary Bow had revive him, and taking what he knew into consideration, they wielded no such power, or a more plausible explanation would be that, it had intervened right before is death, and after that, healed is body back to health, before sending him on is way, though even in is head that sounded absurd, but that had been a common theme around a lot of stories, that something could save anyone as long as they weren't actually dead.

Turning his head to the mentioned weapon, it was still where he had put it, against the wall, gleaming. The legendary weapon hadn't been the culprit behind his summon, that fault rested with the wizards that had cast the ritual. Or maybe they had only started the ritual, and the weapons themselves did the rest, they did after all appear to have some kind of semi-sentience. But how was he suppose to make any sense of anything that occurred, since most of the absolute laws that ruled his previous existence, had been torn apart and apparently rendered useless before the awesome power of magic.

_Stephen Hawkings, would have jumped in joy no pun intended, if he could see this cluster-fuck now..._ Thinking about cluster fuck, he turn his attention towards his guests.

Motoyasu, had yet to stop his inspection of the room, everything in is body speaking of excitement, not all that different from a child that had just gotten a new toy to play with. Ren on the other hand was in his own world, seating in the same chair, eyes darting in different directions, the only indication that he was in fact playing around with the status window. If he were to be honest he had been avoiding looking into it. Not only was it unnatural, but it would change his perception of the world, another stake driving his very being deeper, into the reality of his new existence.

Putting aside those thoughts, he looked at the last occupant of his room, who like Ren was playing with the interface. He probably had figured it out how to use it, or one of the heroes had pointed it out for him, after all from what he remembered, Naofumi had been pretty hopeless in the beginning. If things where to go down like in canon, the poor bastard would very soon be going through a ton of shit. Ryou did feel a small amount of pity, but he wasn't righteous enough to interfere with that particular can of worms, for more then a couple of reasons.

Among them, the fact that what had happen in the story didn't necessarily translate into this reality, and if it did, Naofumi for all the shit that had been tossed is way, had almost single handed carried the story forward. For sure his reasons had been to protect people, and before that, survival, Ryou could relate to the last one at least. After all, he had to find ways to fight, and survive in this new world, and that would include not setting off any 'red flags', and remain low, no matter how selfish that sounded.

* * *

The rest of the time until evening, went flying. They had been offered dinner that chances were, was exactly the type of feast one would see in a royal party. Far too much food for the four of them to reasonably eat, but that actually was on par with his knowledge of noble's mentality. Nobles always had to show their power in whatever form, and that included the amount of food offered.

The rest of the evening passed with some small talk between the four. Strangely enough, there had been no jokes made at Naofumi's weapon expense, but Ryou had written it off has a natural consequence of his presence instead of Itsuki's. After that, they had all returned to their rooms, trying to find some form of rest from the tiring events that had occurred.

Now, sleepless hours later on his bed, Ryou could not help but miss the idle chatter of the others. While initially annoying, the nonsensical conversation had take him away from his thoughts, and given him a small sense of normalcy. Now alone, those very dreaded thoughts had returned with impunity. From the waves that would not allow him to run even if that was what he wanted to do, to a world full of creatures that defiled all laws of nature. and it would get even worse. An image of a women wielding fans as her weapon appeared in his head…

_Glass…_ She would come, hopefully she wouldn't, but he couldn't bet his life on it. A woman, that even Naofumi at his very best up until that point, hadn't been able to touch. In the story the Shield Hero had be forced to retreat or perish. And after that, the Spirit Turtle... A being that might has well be this world equivalent to one of the Nine-tailed beasts from Naruto, capable of razing entire villages to the ground. What else would he have to face even if he could survive until then, what other horrors would await him…

Launching himself off the bed he got up, he had to get away, the walls that surround him were stealing his ability to breathe properly. He needed somewhere to clear his head, to get a breath of fresh air.

Closing the door of his room, he found a maid suspiciously standing just a few meters away from his door. When she heard the door closing, and noticed him, the maid was by his side in moments, bowing.

"Is there anything you desire Yuusha-sama?" Small miracle that she was bowing and had not seen Ryou flinching at the mention of his new official title. Such a thing was repulsive... Everywhere he looked, everything he heard, all of it seem intent on making him accept his fate. No wonder he felt like he was suffocating.

"Hmm yeah, I couldn't sleep you see, so I was wondering if there was some place I could get some fresh air." It was awkward, for him to be addressed and to address someone who was showing so much respect for him. The maid had never met his person, and yet just based on some legend she was bowing and treating him like he was some foreign Noble.

"His Majesty, as requested that the heroes should not leave the Castle before there audience for their own safety." Of course he would, no way would the king, name forgotten at the moment, would let his precious heroes out and about, especially before he could negotiate with them. The maid seem to ponder something before apparently coming to a conclusion, and continuing..

"If its just some fresh air, then Melty-sama's personal garden is just down the stairs through the right, although I urge you Yuusha-sama from doing something that would damage it, her highness takes great pride, and loves her garden." That made sense, Melty was after all the crown princess, having a personal garden was just fitting.

Reassuring the maid yet again, that he would only go stretch his legs, and had no intention of damaging the garden in any way, he was on his way in a fast pace. He wondered if she was expecting him to start throwing magic around the Crown's princess garden. Even if he could he wouldn't. Pissing off Melty, of all people by making a mess of her garden on his first night, sounded like an horrible idea.

After explaining the situation again, to a pair of guards that were most likely doing rounds around the Castle, he reached his destination.

Taking a deep breath of the night air, his eyes explored his surroundings. It was a inner garden like he had expected vases and flower beds everywhere along with at least a couple of tree's . During the day it would most likely be a breathtaking sight, but now he had a difficult time identifying the different colors. All in all it was more of a botanical garden then an inner one.

Finally spotting what looked like a bench, Ryou decided it would be as good as any place to sit and enjoy the light breeze. Half away he was forced to stop by the sudden appearance of a bright yellow light in his arm. Spooked he could only cover his face with an arm while shaking the other shining one. After a few moments the light died down, Ryou lowered his arm, and took notice of the new accessory in his wrist. It was a golden bracelet, something he would never be caught dead wearing, but the most ominous thing about it, was the familiar Yellow round jewel still shining, encroached in it.


	3. A Strange Night Encounter

**A/N:** Hi guys, here's the third chapter of the story some more buildup, and the first few divergences start to appear. Also I apologize in advance for the pacing, but it will still be a few chapters before we get to the real action. On another note, Thank you for all the follows and reviews.

With that said here we go.

* * *

**Chapter 3. Another World: A Strange Night Encounter**

_After a few moments the light died down, Ryou, lowered his arm, and took notice of the new accessory in his wrist. It was a golden bracelet, something he would never be caught dead wearing, but the most ominous thing about it, was the familiar Yellow round gem still shining, encroached in it._

Looking at the bracelet in his arm, now that the initial shock had wear off, Ryou couldn't help but to narrow his eyes at the sight, face twisting into a frown.

Where had the bracelet come from, and why did it have a jewel, identical to the one on the Legendary Bow?

After pondering on this new mystery, a idea crossed his mind, and he took a seat on the bench intent on testing his new theory.

Eyes aimed on the dreaded icon, that had been annoyingly present in the corner of his vision, Ryou finally opened the Status window.

It was a weird sensation, he could see through it, and it was certainly distracting, but besides that, the window looked just like what you would find in a standard RPG.

Displayed, was all the information he had been expecting and more. From his name and current profession, to a diversified assortment of menus, it even presented a picture of himself, and of course his attributes, though Ryou noted a big emphasis on both his agility and attack, his defenses on the other hand showed far lower values. The Bow Hero, didn't have anything to compare too, but he was sure that his Health Points were also on the lower end of the spectrum. The markings of a glass canon, a very dangerous classification to have, in what may very well be a real life hardcore game.

He could easily see why the other heroes had thought that they were in a game, the interface itself, seemed like something that had been pulled out of a virtual reality role playing game. Ryou would also be inclined to agree, but thanks to his foreknowledge he knew better.

Opening the menu that was conveniently named equipment, he took a look at the items named there. A snort escaped him, since his clothes had been classified as O_ff-World Shirt_, _P__ants_, and _S__hoes_ of all things.

_Apparently sneakers aren't a thing here__…_ Obviously they didn't offer any bonus stats, not that he had expected anything, a shirt certainly wasn't going to protect him from a slashing sword or claw.

Resting his eyes on the weapon slot, a small proud smile did appear on his face. His theory had been proved correct. In the weapon slot his bow was equipped followed by the word sealed. It made sense, after all Naofumi hadn't been able to get rid of his shield, the cursed thing was strap to him, he could move it around but that was it. However, the other heroes had no such restrictions, their weapons weren't physically attached to them, but they worked in a similar fashion, they would teleport to the user after a certain limited distance, and the bracelet from what he could gather was indeed the sealed form of his bow.

"Now the big question, how to unseal you?" Ryou questioned out loud. It probably didn't need a secret word or incantation, considering that it was a weapon, and that would be impractical in the heat of battle. As he had been about to open the help menu, the answer to his current dilemma came, and sent him crashing into the ground in fright.

"Try willing it to become unsealed."

Ryou had been spooked out of his mind, but was on his feet in an instant, eyes locked on the culprit responsible for his second, less than gracious fall in this new world.

Cloaked in a dark hood, the person that was now occupying the bench he had been seating on, was female, if the voice was to be of any indication. Wearing a white mask, that one would associate with either a Masquerade ball, or someone who was entertaining some interesting fetishes, she sat there, legs crossed with a small amused smile on her face.

"Who the hell are you?!" Ryou barked, posture going completely rigid, with a glare in his eyes. The woman had come out of nowhere, he only noticed her when she had made herself known, but for how long had she been seating right next to him?

She inclined her head a little at being addressed. "Someone, who's mistress as a great interest in the Heroes, and their well being." It clicked then. The stealth she had demonstrated, the outfit that made her look like a night vigilante, the woman was one of the shadows, the group of spy's slash ninjas from this world.

"Yeah, I'll bet your mistress is just one of many that as a vast interest in us, right?" The question came heavy with sarcasm, and treading on slippery grounds. For some reason though she seemed even more amused now, crossing her legs on the opposite direction, she raised her hands palms upwards, as if showing she had nothing to hide.

"Ah, but Yuusha-sama, I can guarantee that my mistress intentions are benign."

Raising an eyebrow at that, he had to ask, "Isn't that something you would say, even if she had less then pure intentions?" Because in the end, if a stranger came out stating they were trust worthy, the normal reaction would be suspicion.

Thankfully, it had been a few hours since night had settled in, and silence was all around them, or Ryou might have imagined the cough that had come out to mask the small laugh from the female Shadow.

The fact that she had mentioned a mistress, probably meant her boss, was in fact the Queen of Melromarc. But if so, why make contact so soon and with him of all the people? He very much doubted that Itsuki had come for a night walk in canon, and there had been no indication of him meting one of the Shadows so soon. Actually thinking about it the Shadows had only started to show themselves after the first wave, and were a more prominent presence when Melty joined Naofumi's party.

Confusion must have been clear on his face, because she seemed to have read his mind.

"You are wise Yuusha-sama, more so than your companions, you don't give your trust easily either." Well that answered nothing, and how had she come to that conclusion anyway? Had he given that much away during this little encounter, or had she been spying on him?

_Well when in doubt just go for it_... If the woman had the desire to harm him, he wouldn't be breathing right now anyway.

"So who are you anyway, and what do you want, approaching me alone in the middle of the night like this?" Better to play dumb to avoid suspicion, she already had enough on him as it was.

"Me? I'm a simple envoy of my lady, and as for what I want? I simply want to issue a warning, and to help the heroes to the best of my abilities, although regretfully, I can offer very little besides information." Head taking a slight dip, she did look apologetic. The reason behind it must have likely been that the queen didn't want to tip off the pope to the fact that even far away, she was still keeping a close eye on the events in her country. If he remembered correctly the queen had been away during the summon of the heroes, made behind her back, action that had tied her for a long period of time, but even away the woman had plotted the fall of her country's religion. Ryou had to give it to the woman, they had only been summoned a few hours ago, and she had not only been made aware, but had already taken steps to reach out to them. Or maybe she had predicted the situation before it happen, and left standing orders for her Shadows to approach if possible. Either way he had severely underestimated the foresight of the Queen, if she had in fact foreseen all of this then she was a far more dangerous woman then he had previously thought.

"Yes, although I'm sure you have already realized it, I will speak bluntly. There are many eyes on you Heroes... You are symbols, Yuusha-sama... Symbols of power you see… And there are many who would love to wield that power for their benefit." Her tone had taken a far more serious note, a complete contrast to her previous soft demeanor, and Ryou for his part, decided to take the warning seriously and for what it was,

The other heroes had been playthings easily controlled in the beginning, especially Motoyasu. Even Naofumi had fell for Malty's charm. That woman Malty, The King, and probably most of the nobles were in league with the church, even if the church worshiped the three heroes, him being one of those, the Pope who ruled the religion had no problems getting rid of the heroes if that benefited him.

"All that aside, Yuusha-sama, you have still to release your weapon from its sealed state." His contemplations were interrupted with that. Throwing a annoyed look in her direction, Ryou decided to entertain her request. Raising his arm so the bracelet was at eye level, he gave it a try.

_I order you to become unsealed_… That amounted to nothing.

_Reveal yourself!_ Still nothing…

_Please..?_ And the bracelet remained unchanged. Now getting frustrated both with the situation and the fact that he was talking to a bracelet, Ryou decided to take a different approach.

_Okay here is the deal, you turn back into a bow, and I wont throw you into the nearest river, how is that you little shit?!_ As one might expect the bracelet remained exactly the same, thankfully the Shadow woman decided to intervene with a cough, before Ryou could continue with a far more interesting choice of words. Moving his attention from the bracelet towards the woman, she was smiling, and Ryou was sure she was finding his frustrations pretty amusing.

"Your asking… Don't ask… Will it to change form."

With a sigh he looked back towards the bracelet, wondering how did one use their willpower to force something to happen. He decided the best way would be to imagine it becoming a bow again.

The result was instantaneous, in a flash of yellow light, the bow was standing in front of his hand defying gravity. Ryou grabbed it by the grip, and the moment his hand made contact, gravity began to work again, and he could feel the weight of the bow.

Raising his other hand, Ryou smacked it against his forehead, and groaned, "This stupid thing makes zero sense". It defied the laws of gravity, could instantaneously move between locations, and could change both form and matter with nothing but a thought of its wielder.

"Its one of the Four Legendary Weapons Yuusha-sama." That statement explained nothing, but by the way the Shadow woman had stated it, Ryou had the impression that she believed it did.

Taking another look at his weapon, Ryou couldn't contain the look of disdain that cross his face.

"Its full of bullshit, that's what it is." He concluded with certainty.

"The Legendary Bow can change between forms, you only have to will it, that goes for the sealed and unsealed state, as well as any other forms you unlock." She pause in her explanation, hands coming to rest on her lap, before continuing.

"It will also follow its wielder as you observed earlier, but if needed you can just call upon it, and it will come to you." That in particular had been very useful information that he didn't had before, useful and practical, since he could actually drop his weapon, and will it back to him if needed. Ryou off the top of his head, couldn't picture a situation where something like that would be needed, but it could come in use in the future.

"You know, for someone so suspicious, you are pretty forthcoming with information." She had explained all that on her own without any need to ask, and although he might had eventually figured most of that out, it had been helpful.

"As someone living in this world, its important to me that its defenders have the best chance to succeed possible, even if this information only raises that chance by a indiscernible amount, it would still be worth it." She paused and raised her head upwards, eyes on the starts above before continuing. "And just because I'm giving out information, doesn't mean that I'm not collecting it at the same time." She finished, looking back at him, the same infuriating smile once again present on her face.

Face morphing in surprise, Ryou couldn't help but to think on how bluntly she had laid the cards on the table. She had all but confessed that while it might be beneficial to him, she had also been collecting information, seeing what made him tick. After a few seconds Ryou did come to the conclusion that it hardly mattered, he had been at a disadvantage since the beginning, so there really was no point in stopping now.

"Okay, fair is fair, since we reach this point let me ask you, the wizards or whatever they were, said the world needed to be saved, but they didn't actually explained what was threatening it, what exactly am I going to have to face?"

Ryou knew about the waves of course, but he had to be sure that his knowledge matched with this reality.

"The Waves of Calamity… Nobody is sure how they started or why they happen, what we do know however is that its a cyclic event, happens every few hundred years, and that it as been happening for a long, long time now, according to our oldest records that is… " The shadow said with a somber tone crossing her arms.

"As the name implies they are waves, waves of monsters that is. Multiple ones, although the exact number is unknown they need to be cleared, and for that we need you heroes, after every wave there is a small period of peace before the next one comes."

That matched with what he knew about the waves, but he couldn't decide if it was good or bad to have confirmation.

Hand in front of his mouth, one finger scratching his cheek, Ryou fired his next round of questions in quick succession.

"And how do you clear it? Do we have to kill all the monsters, or is there something else we need to do, and if so what happens to the monsters after it? On that note, how big is the interval between waves, and is there a way to know where they are going to happen? " Ryou closed his eyes, and had to take a deep breath, after a few seconds they opened, and looked at the woman expectantly.

The Shadow for her part had her mouth slightly open, before closing it and recollecting herself. "Well.." She begun, "As far as clearing the waves, you don't need to worry about killing all the monsters, you have to kill a very specific one, the strongest usually, it should be clear what it his when you see it. The first couple of waves can be endured, and they will eventually closed by themselves, but after that, they will only end when you kill the strongest monsters, although any remaining monster will stay after it, even now almost three months later we are still dealing with remnants of the first wave." She took another breath before answering the rest of his questions.

"As for the location, you don't need to worry, the four cardinal heroes will be sent automatically to the wave. As far as the time of peace between the waves, its hard to pinpoint, but it can go from two to four months."

He had missed it at first, she had mentioned three months after the first wave, and a normal period between the waves of two to four months.

_That can__'t be right…_ Ryou thought, while the time between the waves had been somewhat random, from what he remembered, it had been at a maximum one an half months, not two at the minimum. That kind of fundamental change couldn't be attributed to his existence.

"Two to four months, so the next wave will be in one month?" He had to clarify.

"Yes, the last wave did happen almost three months ago, even if it was decided right after that the heroes would indeed be needed, the summon itself was something easier said then done, so it took this long to prepare, One month to get stronger is not much, I know, it is what you have to work with though". She did looked truly sorry, more so then the Wizards slash 'cultists' that had summoned him here, at least.

He didn't have a choice but to be ready, it was either that, or death, the wave would see to that, there would be no running from it, not while being a hero. The time interval, that was something different, so he couldn't help but wonder, if the rest of the canon would actually stay the same, or if his foreknowledge, the only weapon at his disposal right now, had been rendered useless right on the first day. That couldn't be it, there was no doubt that this was Melromarc, the one he had read about in the manga, there were some differences, but some events would come to pass.

_They have to, they just have to__…._

"Its unfortunate Yuusha-sama, but I will have to take my leave now, I will come to you in the future and hopefully able to help you in a more direct form, in exchange, I urge you to keep this meting a secret." The statement brought Ryou out of his grim musings. She raised herself from the bench, and took two steps before turning around, the same small smile on her face, with one finger touching her lower lip.

"Ohh, and please don't play around with your bow here, or Melty-sama will get angry." Ryou opened his mouth, intent on making it quite explicit once again, that he was not going to damage Melty's garden, but she disappeared, like she had never been there, no movement, no sound, just gone.

He should have been ashamed of himself, since it actually took a little while before his brain, caught on with what the Shadow had said, and when it did, his chin would have hit the ground if possible.

_Wait, the god damned maid?! Seriously.?!_ How had he, not recognized her... And how the hell had she managed to not only change her hair style, but also put on her outfit, and made her way to the inner garden, all in under five minutes or so?

Taking a seat on the now vacant bench, Ryou had come to the conclusion that he himself, had found her suspicious the first time his eyes had rested upon her form, she had been standing outside of his room for no apparent reason after all. She had also been able to draw comparisons between him and the other heroes, that indicated some spying on her part, and what better way to do so, then in plain sight.

_She really had me at a disadvantage right from the beginning didn__'t she..?_ With a sigh, he released a breath, and guided his thoughts to the conversation with her instead.

Most of the information she had released matched what he knew, and he had learned more about his weapon. The time difference between the waves, might influence a lot of things, but in the long run it could turn out to be a good thing, he did need all the time he could feasibly get, and even that might not be enough. He really doubted that any amount of time, would prepare him for what lay ahead.

But the biggest, and foremost question on his mind, was the one Ryou didn't have a answer for….

_What now..?_ And that was truly the million dollar question wasn't it…


	4. His Own Choice

**A/N: **Hey guys, here's another chapter, again thank you for the reviews, and follows.

Once more, I apologize for the pacing, but there a lot of elements that I want to portrait right at the beginning the Story will definitely pick up pace, but not before the first wave the hero's face.

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**Chapter 4. Another World: His Own Choice**

_What now..? And that, was truly the million dollar question, wasn__'t it…_

After waking up from a short sleep, on what had been a mostly sleepless night, Ryou lay in bed collecting his thoughts. The night before he had the strange encounter with the Shadow Maid, after what had been an enlightening conversation, he had returned to his room intent on laying down some goals. He had always worked better when he had a goal in sight, or at least some guidelines to follow, not that he couldn't improvise, he would still be for the most part, flying by the seat of his pants of course.

First thing first, he had to survive that was obvious, and to do that he had to get stronger, even if he had no idea how to go about it.

Of all Legendary Weapons, he had been given the bow, probably the hardest to master, or at least the hardest to use right off the bat. He had been a pretty decent shot in his previous world, if you could count two times as any indicator of proficiency. But there existed a colossal difference between shooting a large standing target, and a small moving one, worst yet, one month was all he had to get at least the basics down. One month before the wave. Using a bow with any mastery would take years, if he even had any talent for it. After the wave, there would only be a few months before the situation got worse, much worse.

He had to figure it out on the way, that would be the only solution as far as his weapon was concerned.

The second important thing was laying low. There were potential threats everywhere, but that realization also brought with it another problem, like everything else in this world. The heroes had everyone looking at them even Naofumi, although that one would be for different reasons. They had, according to the canon enough people with them to form a football team at all times, Ren had actually decided to use a system similar to a guild to manage everyone.

Ryou, had pondered about that particular subject for a while, there existed a very high chance that some of the adventurers were spy's in disguise, and would report the heroes movements to the King, or worse yet, to the Pope. Having experience warriors at his side would most certainly be a boon, especially since at present he was mostly useless in battle, but did that safety net outweigh the fact that his actions would be monitored?

It was a short term solution, that could bring long term problems, maybe even fatal ones.

If the events from canon were to take place, it would become inevitable that the heroes would come to trade blows with the Church of the Three Heroes, and the Pope himself. Letting those members of the Church, and the Pope have access to every bit of information about the abilities, and skills he might acquire, seemed in hindsight like a very bad idea.

There was also another fact, although this one being much less important. Ryou had never been a people's person. At one point he had a circle of friends, that would go out for drinks or just spend the night hanging out, but after his parent's incident he had stop meeting them, and eventually they had also moved on with their own lives.

He, was not so arrogant to think that he could face what was coming alone, but he also needed to learn how to survive in this world, and that wouldn't happen if he allowed himself to be pampered and cuddle, the same thing that would most likely happen to both Motoyasu and Ren.

Sure he was afraid, very much so, terrified even, this world was littered with impossible creatures that shouldn't exist, but it was something that he had to do, there would be no other choice, that much he had concluded the previous night. The wave would call for him, and if he wasn't ready by then, death would follow, and not a painless one.

So after considering everything, a decision had been made, he would go out alone into the world, he would learn, take one step at the time, and hopefully get strong enough to survive. A different choice, from what the canon Bow Hero had made, but it wasn't like he could follow Itsuki steps, since the story had mostly focused on Naofumi. Either way the story wouldn't stay the same, that was a fact, his presence alone would see to that, so it was better to focus on living.

* * *

After being summoned for breakfast, Ryou, and the others were taken to a ball room, once again the meal had far too much food, enough to feed a big family at least.

During the meal the four Heroes made small talk with each other, now that Ryou, had his head in the game he began to pay attention to the other heroes, and came up with a few observations.

Naofumi, was far too optimistic, and naive, believing in fantasy, that nothing could go wrong, a stark contrast to what his personality would become. He was basically what Ryou had been expecting at this point.

Motoyasu, was to put it simply an idiot, but a good guy overall, Ryou would venture to guess that in his world he would be the center of any party. Although the Spear Hero made no attempt to hide his lewd tendencies. Ryou himself, might have taken a couple of subtle looks towards the maids that had served them, he was only a man, and the maids were quite attractive, but subtle was something that didn't exist in Motoyasu's dictionary. He also was quite the amusing guy. All in all, Ryou wouldn't have a problem dealing with Motoyasu.

Ren... Ren had been another story altogether, he had not paid much attention to the Sword Hero the day prior. But now he had, and he also tried to give him a freebie being five years his junior. It didn't work, the teen was condescending beyond belief to everyone, the type of person, Ryou had taken great strides in avoiding in his old world, and with good reason, because otherwise he wouldn't have resisted the temptation of strangling them on spot. Sure, that unlike the other two, Ren was the most collected and rational, but it was his holier-than-thou tone, present in every single statement, like everyone was beneath him, and that, Ryou couldn't stand. So the best way to deal with it was to ignore the teen, he would be out of his hair soon enough.

After reaching these conclusions, he decided to continue his plotting on how to throw the king off his back, without suspicion hopefully.

* * *

When they finished their meal, the servants had escorted them to the throne room, taking what appeared to be the scenic route, indent on showing every little thing, or at least what they had been allowed to see in Ryou opinion. By the time they reach their destination, Ryou had an half baked plan, hoping it would be enough. If the King pushed hard enough, he wouldn't be able to reject the party without arousing suspicion, and that was exactly what he wanted to avoid at all costs.

The throne room, was enormous capable of holding a couple hundred people easily, with marble white floor, walls and sculpt pillars, the other predominant colors being red and gold, the colors of Royalty. Soldiers were lined up on either side of the room, and in the throne, seated, was the King himself. On one side of the King were the wizards slash cultists that had summoned them to this world. On the other side, also lined up were a group of people, and from their clothing, they were most likely nobles.

Lining up besides Motoyasu, Ryou took a good look at the King, as he introduced himself, his voice suave yet strong. King of Melromarc, Aultcray Melromarc XXXII, or Aultcray, and Ryou finally had the name on the man behind is unofficial kidnap. He certainly looked the part, grey long hair, and beard, face full of wrinkles, dressed in one of the most fanciful grabs he had ever seen anyone the crown with the purple jewel on his head, had been the mark that clearly separated him from the rest, that, and the fact the he was the one on a throne obviously.

"Heroes, name yourselves." Ryou had to take a deep breath, that had been an order, not a question. The only people that got to order him around were his parents when they were alive, for obvious reasons, even his boss knew how to asked something politely he might add, that would always be the sign of good leadership skills. But he had to reign himself, there was an obvious cultural gap here, and he had to take that into consideration.

Taking his sword in both hands, Ren went first, "Amaki Ren, sixteen years old, high school student."

Stepping forward, spear against his shoulder, Motoyasu went next, "I'm Kitamura Motoyasu. Twenty-one, and a college student."

Realizing he was next, Ryou introduced himself, griping his bow slightly harder, "Ryou Takuma, Twenty-one years old, and soon to be unemployed I think." The truth, he didn't knew if returning to his world, would even be possible and if it was, he would be unemployed when he returned for sure, that was if time flowed the same in both worlds.

"And, Lastly my name is…" Naofumi went to introduced himself but the King cut him off.

"Ren, Motoyasu and Ryou is it?" Ryou's eyes narrowed at the obvious interruption, that had been a glaring sign of what was to come.

_So those events will come to pass after all__…_

Naofumi, took two steps forward pointing to himself, "Hey King, aren't you forgetting me?" Ryou had to look down in order to hide the smile and hold in the snort that had threaten to escape.

_Screw the cultural gap right, Naofumi__…_ He couldn't help but to think with amusement.

The King for his part apologized, looking anything but sorry and allowed Naofumi to continue.

"My name is Iwatani Naofumi. I'm twenty, and a college student." So not counting Ren, they were all around the same age, Ryou thought. He had that suspicion, but it was interesting to know for sure, that they were all in the same age bracket.

"Now then… I suppose, I owe you an explanation…" The King continued without delay, and Naofumi looked crestfallen at the treatment. Ryou, couldn't help but to think that the Shield Hero should have been suspicious of the whole situation right there, he was after all being singled out.

The King, proceed to explained the motivations behind their summoning. It all had been knowledge that Ryou already possessed both from canon, and from the Shadow Maid.

"We underestimated how terrible the waves were, and only realized it after we experienced one, that only the four heroes could save this world." Furrowing his eyebrows in though, Ryou had to wonder, if that had really been the case. The first wave had hit Raphtalia's village, and from what he understood the village had been mostly composed of Demi-humans, given Aultcray's hatred towards the species, he probably had considered it a blessing in disguise.

"And so we followed the legend, and summoned you four." _Behind your wife__'s back you mean, what a great man you are…_ Ryou, couldn't help but to add mentally, even if the atmosphere in the room was one of complete seriousness.

"We understand what is going on now. But you can't expect us to save your world for free." Ryou had to question the thought process of the Sword Hero, just because they were herald has saviors, in reality their power at the moment was a very flimsily thing, yet he had been ready to make demands on the spot.

"Of course, after you defeat the waves, you shall all be rewarded most generously." The man that had been standing besides Aultcray, most likely some form of adviser, confirmed.

"Will we now? Well if we have your word then, I'm good." Motoyasu concluded, and Ryou had to once again question his 'comrades' thought process, before remembering that they believed that this world was in fact a game, and then their demands made a lot more sense. The only reason to take on a quest, was the reward, normally.

"We'll work with you people, but don't think for a second that you can control us." _More than you already will be, you mean..?_ Okay, so maybe, just maybe, Ryou might had taken a slightly antagonistically approach where Ren was concerned, but it was deserved, in his mind.

"We have an agreement then." The King declared.

"Well yes, but we are all level one, we can't really fight like this can we?" Motoyasu questioned, and it was apparent the the Spear Hero actually had a brain.

Well he had let the others take the lead, but this was has good of a opening has any, "We need to go out into the world, and get stronger right?" Ryou questioned.

"Indeed Yuusha-sama…" the adviser confirmed, before continuing, "...you must all leave on a adventure, this will allow you to develop the legendary weapons in your possession." That brought up another thing, that Ryou hadn't thought about. The upgrade system for the Legendary weapons. They had been different for each one, but later Naofumi discovered that they could all be used. There had been the one, where one gave the weapon monsters loot to unlock other weapons, there had also been the one that allowed to copy other identical weapons, he couldn't remember the others .

_Another thing to look into I suppose__… _Ryou added mentally to the ongoing list of things he had to figure out.

"So they aren't maxed out right now?" Naofumi questioned, scratching his head. His statement made no sense at all, if they all thought that this was a game, what kind of games had they been playing, that allowed the beginners weapon, legendary or not, to come maxed out right off the bat…

"Besides mine isn't even what you would call a weapon, so shouldn't we all form a party". The shield hero proposed, but the adviser shot the idea down immediately.

"I'm sorry Yuusha-sama, but each and every one of you will have to recruit, and adventure separately from each other. The legendary weapons repel each other when in close proximity."

A pop-up window appeared in front of Ryou's face explaining, exactly that. When in close proximity the weapons would incur a penalty in the experience gained, depending on the distance it would even nullify experience gained altogether. Ryou had to question the logic behind that, sure that system had been meant to incentive the heroes to develop separately, and learn things by themselves without having the others influencing one another, but on the other hand, wouldn't it be beneficial for them to be allowed to work together? That would call for teamwork, and that had been something plaguing the story from moment one. There was probably a greater purpose for that system, but for the life of him, Ryou couldn't figure it out.

"Its almost noon now, go wait, and after lunch you will come back too meet the adventurers that I chose yesterday to join you on your travels".

_Well here we go__… _"Excuse me your Highness, but if possible, I would like to travel alone." This made everyone in the room look at him in confusion, besides Aultcray who looked only slightly surprised by his request.

"Why would you request something like that? I guarantee that the people chosen are battle proved warriors of this country, the best of the best, they will not hinder you in any way." Aultcray affirmed, and Ryou forced a small smile on his face trying to look has apologetic has he could even though his fists were slightly clenched.

"And, I believe your words your Highness, but that is the problem. Am I not suppose to be a hero? If that is so, then I should go out into the world and experience it for myself, see it with my own eyes, and learn. Unless I experience the adversities it as to offer, I wont be able to perform my role adequately." That had been Ryou's game plan, to use his position has hero, and to question his efficiency. These people would want their heroes has strong as possible, that would raise the chances of actually surviving the waves.

"And do you believe, having strong comrades will stop you from experiencing these adversities?" The King questioned, and Ryou had detect a small amount of mockery in the man's words, most likely questioning his naivety. Ryou, had to restrain his anger before continuing. It rang true, after all it would be naive to think that just because you had help, that the world would be nice enough not throw shit at you. But Ryou knew that personally, the world would always throw crap at you, from the moment you were born, until the moment you died.

"Stop them? No, but make them less troubling? Then yes, the adventurers that your Highness chose, have experience about this world, and its ways that I, do not yet possess. I want to learn for myself, and then choose my comrades accordingly. I acknowledge, that this course of action, might be a mistake on my part, and if that comes to pass, I will swallow my pride, and properly apologize for my arrogance." Ryou claimed, bowing for good measure. That might had been going over board, but throwing a little humbleness would probably make him seem manageable, and easier to control.

"When that time comes, we will still be extending our hand to you, Yuusha-sama, you are after all one the Legendary Heroes, but if this is your wish, so be it". The King finally declared, and Ryou had to hold in the breath of relief that threaten to come out, even if the man had taken his return as a certainty.

_Not on your life, you condescending prick__…_

Come what may, this had been his choice, his first true own choice, since arriving on this world, and he would live with it, even if it turned out to be a mistake. The king had allowed it far too easily, and that most likely meant his spy theory was out.

"You… You, are one of those crazy hardcore players aren't you?" His musings were interrupted, and Ryou couldn't stop the small laugh that escaped his mouth, both at Motoyasu's question, and at the irony.

Even if the context was different, Motoyasu had nailed it without even trying. Back in his teen years, when he still played a lot of video games, mostly RPG's, if the game had hardcore mode, he would play on it, the thrill of risk versus reward was a real addiction at the time. The irony was that now, Ryou would be playing the biggest, and scariest hardcore game ever, with the highest of risks, and the reward being the chance to live.

"You do realize that its far more efficient to level in a party... Right?" Ren, more stated then questioned, throwing a sideways glance at him.

_And cue the condescending one__…_

"I was always a solo kind of player, so..." Ryou explained, Ren for his part just tsked before…

"Don't fall to much behind then, or we will have to pick up the slack." Ryou, decided that it would be for the best, to ignore that one entirely.

"Hey, you know that there might be some cute girls in those groups right? Are you alright with losing that opportunity?" Motoyasu asked, in what could hardly be called a whisper.

_Goddammit Motoyasu, is that everything you think about__…_ Ryou thought with a sigh.

"He is right you know? There might be a really cute one!" That statement prompted Ryou, to send a look of disbelief towards the speaker.

_Really Naofumi!? Really..!_ But unfortunately Ryou, couldn't actually voice his disbelief, however...

"Be careful not to get wrapped around a cute one's finger, some woman are nothing but trouble." Ryou replied in a low voice, and that, had been as far has he had been willing to go for his fellow hero, not that it would change much if anything, but there had been a need to say something at least.

"Pfff that's blasphemy speech right there Ryou!" And Motoyasu voice was back to is standard volume, for all the world to hear, but before the mentioned Hero could share a couple of less than nice words, Aultcray spoke.

"You will at the very least, stay for the meeting after lunch, there are also other things that I want to bestow upon you heroes." Again with the ordering, but Ryou couldn't exactly refuse that, he had gotten his way after all.

"Of course your Highness, and I thank you for your generosity". Another slight bow, and there it was, at last, a small pleased smile on Aultcray's face.

_Haaa, the joys of fake pleasantries__…_ Ryou thought, also with a small smile, it had been something that had served him well, when asking something of his superiors in his old world.

* * *

A few moments later, they had been guided to another new room, smaller then the previous one, but still needlessly big, filled with tables, most likely one of the rooms used for the Royal Feasts. Soon enough the room had been filled with other people, and they weren't alone anymore.

From the clothes they were wearing, with vivacious colors, and far too elaborated details, the new arrivals were nobles. They conglomerated in groups of various size, speaking among themselves, but not even one approaching them. That suited Ryou just fine, he had no intention nor desire to entertain them.

Once again during the meal, Motoyasu, had questioned his choice of not taking anyone along, even offering one of his own members with the condition that Ryou couldn't pick a cute one. The Spear hero, had started fantasizing about his own party, full of cute girls, his very own personal harem, and unfortunately, if reality, and canon aligned that would actually come to be a thing.

After the feast, they were yet again escorted to the throne room, where the adventurers were already lined up in front of the King.

Ryou surveyed them with curiosity, until his eyes came to rest on the most interesting one.

_Malty__…_

There had been no doubt in his mind to who she was once his eyes had found her, and he had to give up on some of his doubts about Naofumi, and Motoyasu's naivety, because his fellow heroes never stood a chance to begging with. She was attractive, very much so, with crimson red hair, emerald green eyes, and proportions to match the rest of her beauty, she truly was a sight to behold. A pleasant smile present on her face, and there was really nothing pointing to her true motives. If he didn't had his foreknowledge Ryou had to admit between her looks, and pleasant demeanor she would have fooled him too.

So entrenched was he, in his thoughts, that he didn't noticed he had been staring until her eyes meet his own, her smile growing a fraction, and then she winked at him.

Quickly adverting his eyes, Ryou felt a shiver, starting at the root of his hair, and ending on his toes, and not the good kind, the kind one would feel when on the receiving end of such a gesture from a beautiful woman.

_Ohh hell no! Don__'t even think about it you witch!_

He knew she would pick Naofumi, she would… But history had already some discrepancies, what was stopping it from changing even further?

The gesture had probably meant less then nothing, probably aimed to catch his attention, she would flirt with anything with two legs, as long as it suit her, but even that knowledge hadn't stop the feeling of horror, and dread he felt. If she decided to come with him for whatever reason... If fate decided to screw with him in such a horrible way, Ryou would make a run for it.

_Screw the presents or whatever, no amount of money is worth this particular headache__…_

Fortunately, it was Aultcray that put an end to his fears.

"These are the warriors chosen by me, to accompany you on your journey, unfortunately Yumi no Yuusha-sama has decided to start on his own, and I shall respect that decision." Aultcray declared.

As expected, the adventurers came forward dividing themselves between Motoyasu and Ren, leaving Naofumi completely alone.

"Hey King!" Naofumi had realized what happen, and spoke with apprehension.

"I have to admit, this is something I was not expecting." Aultcray commented tone flat, and the Nobles perch on the second floor started whispering among themselves.

_My ass you weren__'t… _Ryou thought, clinking his tongue, softly.

A man came up, and whispered something in Aultcray's ear prompting Motoyasu to speak, "Did something happen?"

Frown forming on his face, Aultcray answered, "Hmm, it appears that rumors have spread around town, that the Tate no Yuusha is ignorant about most things in this world."

_So rumors have spread over night, across the entire town, that Naofumi possesses no knowledge about this world..?_ Ryou thought with disbelief, that would have been impossible, for a town has big as Castle Town, unless someone had access to a lot of manpower, and the power to order them to very deliberately spread those rumors.

_And its not like there is someone that meets those particular qualities right here in this room, right..? _Taking a good look at the King Ryou couldn't help but to notice, the man actually looked more bored then worried.

It was happening just like it had in canon, a very well planned scheme to bring down Naofumi before he could rise, or rather the Shield Hero. The fact that it had been Naofumi had no weight here. Any other guy would take the fall, so long that he possessed the Legendary Shield.

_I'm sorry Naofumi, and this might make me a prick, but all things considered I'm actually glad I'm not in your shoes__… _Ryou decided, with a glance at the shield hero.

"Huh? What does that even mean?" Naofumi asked, indignation present on both his voice, and posture.

"Legend says, that the Heroes are always summoned with deep knowledge about this world, and apparently everyone seems to think that this is knowledge he doesn't possess." The King explained, with tone, and posture equal to someone commenting on the weather.

"Maybe someone heard our chat last night." That was Motoyasu, and although that had been true, he had it wrong, the one who had eavesdropped on their conversation wouldn't have spread those kinds of rumors, however the conversation during dinner, where Naofumi had asked questions about the games that they used to play had been heard by all the maids that had served them.

"Seriously?! Motoyasu? Ren! You guys don't need that many, lend me one at least?" Naofumi was shouting in slight desperation, and Ryou felt bad for his fellow hero, but maybe it would have been better if he had been alone from the start.

"I'm kind of a loner like Ryou, even if its rational to level in a party, those that can't keep up might as well join you." And every single adventurer behind Ren got a step closer to him, intent quite clear.

Naofumi turned to Motoyasu, and he was scratching his head looking slightly embarrassed, "Well, I'm actually surprised too, my party is full of girls, weird huh?"

That brought a thought to Ryou's head, they were all pretty cute too it almost seemed like they had heard their conversation during lunch, and moved accordingly. If that had been the case, then Ryou's paranoia hadn't been as out there as he had thought.

It was both amazing, and terrifying the true extent these people went too to set Naofumi up. Until the last moment, they had moved to screw him over, the entirety of the town, and only because he had the amazing stroke of luck to be picked by the Legendary Shield. He had done nothing wrong at all, only a twist of fate, and he had been set to fall.

_There is no way, I will ever be able to trust these people__…_

"So you are telling me to go alone!? Ryou might get away with it, he actually as a weapon, but me, I only have this shield!" Naofumi questioned steaming.

"Yuusha-sama, would you allow me to join the Tate no Yuusha-sama?" A voice broke from the crowd of adventurers, prompting everyone to look at her. Malty had a friendly posture with a smile on her face.

"You sure?" Motoyasu asked, slightly annoyed or maybe jealous, Ryou observed

_Don__'t worry... She will be your problem soon enough, Motoyasu, not that you'll care, I'm sure you will have quite the added benefits…_

"Yes!" She looked all to happy with that answer, her smile widening even more.

"Are there any other who want to join Tate no Yuusha-sama's party?" Aultcray questioned, and nobody moved so with a sigh he continued moments later.

"It can't be helped, you will have to recruit more for yourself, in compensation your payment will be higher then the rest of the heroes, same goes for Yumi no Yuusha-sama."

Ryou was very pleased to hear that, he had a few things that he absolutely needed to buy, and it would be good to have a bigger margin in monetary terms.

"Every month we will provide the heroes with war funds, to help you in your task, and here they are." Four servants came forward with bags in there hands, they proceed to deposit those on the heroes hands.

Ryou weighted the pouch in his hand with curiosity, it was heavy, and had the metallic sound of coins clashing with each other.

"Naofumi-sama will receive eight hundred silver coins, and Ryou-sama will have access to one thousand silver coins since he will be leaving alone, the others will be awarded with six hundred each"

A pleasant surprise, a thousand silver coins sounded like a lot, but he had no clue how economics in Melromarc worked. There had been a few prices thrown around in the story, but he could only remember how much Raphtalia had cost, and that would hardly be a good indicator on how much anything was worth, being this world's equivalent to human traffic, and all.

"Use these funds on equipment, and other necessities, and set out in your journey!" Aultcray declared.

"Yes sir!" They all confirmed before leaving the confines of the castle, and out into the world.

With his face set in grave determination, Ryou couldn't help but to think... _And so it begins__…_


	5. Starting Out, A Lone Wolf

**A/N****:** Here we go guys, another chapter were Ryou meets both new, and familiar faces.

On a different note, Ryshia has been added to the story, and to the character tags. As far as Ryou's party members, I already have a good idea who will join him, one is obvious, the others not really, you guys just have to wait, and see.

Another thing that I, want to mention is that the Cursed Series will definitely make an appearance. I'm still on the fence about the Blessed Series as far as Ryou is concerned although both the Cursed, and Blessed Series if they appear will only make an appearance in the far future.

Finally a big thank you to everyone that took the time to read, and for all the support.

* * *

**Chapter 5. Another World: Starting Out, A Lone Wolf**

"_Yes sir!", They all confirmed before leaving the confines of the castle, and out into the world. _

_With his face set in grave determination, Ryou couldn't help but to think... And so it begins__…_

Castle Town was truly a breathtaking sight, even if it didn't possess an equal amazing name. The castle had been built on top of the highest hill in the region, brilliant from a strategic point of view, not so much as far as safety was concerned, after all Ryou, could almost bet that if an earthquake high enough on the Richter Scale occurred, it would bring the entire structure down on the residents below.

The town itself, appeared to have been built in layers around the castle, it continued downhill, and far beyond. For a town from the medieval ages it was enormous, but it made sense since it served has the capital for the entire country.

It was a great view, one that Ryou, was taking his time to enjoy now that he was out of the Castle's Main Gate.

As far as the start of a journey, it had been very lackluster so far, basically walk out, bid goodbye to the other heroes, and stop to take in the sights for a little bit. One would expect for all the hype the heroes had, there would have been fireworks, and parades, but nothing of the sort happened.

_Well__… I'll will take this over a flock of murderous Spearows trying to peck me to death under a thunderstorm…_

That had been a pretty epic starting scene when watched on TV, probably not so much for Ash, and taking in consideration the weapon sealed in his wrist, a Universe full of Pokemon would certainly be within the realm of possibilities.

Shaking his head of thoughts about alternative reality's, Ryou had a lot of things he had to get done before going out in a monster hunting expedition. He pushed that back to the very last thing on the list, because he needed to cover all his bases, not because he might be slightly scared of a creature that defied imagination jumping out of the bushes.

First was obvious. He had to explore the town, and familiarize himself with it. Finding a Inn, and someplace to get his meals would be a good start. Next would be getting some understanding of the economics of this world. A thousand silver sounded like a lot, but without any idea on the cost of anything, he could very easily be swindled.

Walking down what he assumed was the main street, since it lead from the castle all the way to the entrance gate, Ryou spotted some guards doing rounds, or just talking between themselves, it wasn't until a couple minutes walking, that he noticed a particular guard on a secluded area. The man was slouching, with a hand moving in front of his face to cover the yawn that escaped him, apparently bored of his mind. That gave Ryou an idea, that might just solve most of his initial problems.

_Well lets see if this Hero status thing is worth as much here, as it is in canon__… _With a simple thought, the bracelet turned back into bow form, and with it firmly in grasp he made his way towards the guard in question.

It took him to be within a couple of meters from his target, for the guard to finally notice his approach. The guard sweep him with his eyes, suspicion quite present in them, until they came to rest on his weapon. Couple of seconds passed, before the realization hit the man, and he went from slouching to ramrod straight in record time, addressing him in a shaky tone.

"Yuusha-sama, what is it that you require?" The man had even thrown in a salute, and Ryou, couldn't really stop the grin from forming.

"Good afternoon sir, I couldn't help but to notice that you seemed a little bored, and thought that maybe you wouldn't mind helping me with a small problem." Ryou questioned, and it might be because of the temperature, or because the man had a full suit of armor on, but there were more then a couple of liquid drops running down his face.

"Of course, anything you desire Yuusha-sama!" The man appeared to be on the verge of a nervous breakdown, though Ryou couldn't identify if the reason, had been his own sudden appearance, or the fact that he had caught the guard quite clearly avoiding his duties.

_So this Hero Status thing still maintains its advantages after all__…_

"Well that was what I was hoping to hear, so here's the thing…"

* * *

For the next hour Ryou, proceeded to question the poor guard in all matter of things.

It had been a very beneficial hour. He found out that the layers forming Castle Town were not just for show. The layer closest to the Castle accommodated all the higher ranking nobles, along with the most loyal, and distinguished knights. After that the ranking of the nobles went down along the layers until it reached one of the main streets that circled the town, from there it was the start of the commercial zone, or unofficially known has the peasant area, the street forming an invisible barrier between the two worlds. Most of the stores were obviously located in the lower levels, with the exception of high-end restaurants, and vanity stores.

Thankfully the guard had also given him the approximate location of countless stores, and other services. From restaurants, taverns, to inns, and even a couple of blacksmiths, he had difficulty memorizing everything, choosing to at the very least keep the Inns location in mind. The man had even thrown a couple of brothel's in the mix, not that he had any intention what-so-ever of visiting such places, but the guard apparently had thought it would be valuable information.

After that he had inquired about the average price of an assortment of things. It was in that moment, that it became apparent that one thousand silver corresponded to a small fortune. The scaling of money in this World was divided in three tiers, cooper for the lowest, and one hundred cooper coins were equal to one silver coin, silver, and cooper were your standard currency for most part. The last tier was gold coins, where one gold coin was equal in value to one hundred silver coins, all in all it was an easy, and practical system.

Also according to the guard, a simple meal could go from two to ten cooper coins depending on the place, and on what you wanted to eat, of course if one were to go to an high end establishment the price would skyrocket, very much like a gourmet restaurant. He had also given the average pricing for general equipment, potions, and Inn rooms.

It had also been shocking to discover that a pair of good quality gauntlets, where worth nearly twice as much as a young child's life, shocking, and disgusting.

He did feel a weight in his chest when he thought about Raphtalia, and what she was probably going through at that very moment, far more pity then he felt for her eventual Master. For all the machinations arrayed against Naofumi, a small part of the blame had been on him. Sure there was little one could do when an entire country was against you, but Naofumi had made their job even easier, trusted to easily, taking everything with optimism that border lined on being naive, and would very soon pay the price.

Raphtalia on the other hand… If things had taken place just like in the story, then what she had went through, could be considered both monstrous, and sick. She barely reached double digits in age, yet she had already seen, and lived through some of the worst the world could throw at you.

He really did hate the fact that he couldn't do anything for her at the moment, but that was a can of worms he didn't dare mess with. For one, she would eventually be Naofumi moral support for most part. He didn't knew if things would play out exactly has they had before, but she was essential as Naofumi's Sword, there was no other way, the alternative could very well doom them all.

* * *

It took a while to reach the commercial area of Castle Town, for a straight street it had been awfully long. But it had been obvious that he had reach it, there were stalls all over the place along with the random merchant here, and there with a assortment of goods, some he couldn't even begin to identify.

Making his way in the direction, where one of the Inns was suppose to be, Ryou couldn't help but be amazed by how lively this part of town was when compared to the higher levels.

It was during his observations that Ryou spotted something that made him come to a complete stop. Both the manga, and the Anime had showed them, but there was a stark difference between something animated or in paper, and reality. It was a girl, a little girl probably no older then ten, wearing a pink dress, a little girl with a pair of ears… Bunny ears… Blinking a couple of times at the sight to clear away his astonishment he continued to stare.

The girl, had her attention focused on a small tree before her, the corner of her mouth turned down, and was biting on her lip. Following her line of sight, Ryou quickly identified the problem. There, on the lowest branch, was a ball not unlike the one Naofumi had bought for Raphtalia.

_Isn__'t this like the most cliche setting ever? Boy meets girl, saves her ball from the mean tree, next thing you know she's following you everywhere, calling you Onii-chan, and the whole thing will become very awkward, very fast…_

With a sigh, Ryou accepted his fate, maybe some good karma would come out of it, god knew he desperately needed it.

Reaching up on his toes, thankfully the branch was within reach, and so was the ball, after a couple of tries the ball was safely in his hand. Ryou, brought it down to the little girl's eye level, who had been looking at his actions with apprehension.

"Here you go little lady, this is what you wanted right?" Ryou offered with a small smile. The small girl took the ball, hugging the thing to her chest, apprehension completely gone, now that her precious possession was safely in her arms.

"Thank you mister!" She was all smiles, her excitement contagious.

"Just be careful where you play with it, I might not be around to save it from the mean tree, okay?" Wide smile still in place, she confirmed bopping her head up, and down in agreement.

"Rasha, what have I told you about bothering others." A far deeper voice came from behind. Ryou turned around to take a look at the owner. It was a man, clearly part of nobility if the garments where anything to go by. He had at least a few centimeters on Ryou, light brown hair with some grey's, and a few wrinkles.

She looked slightly ashamed, before springing back trying to explain her actions.

"Haaa Raid-Sama! I'm sorry, the ball got stuck on the tree again, and this mister got it for me." The mans eyes shifted towards Ryou before scratching his chin.

"Is that so?" The man was clearly evaluating him, looking him up ,and down maybe to see if he had less than honorable intentions, a few moments he seemed to reach some sort of conclusion with his eyes narrowing.

"You are one of the Heroes." It hadn't been a question, but rather stating a fact, like the sky was blue, and Ryou found himself scratching his neck nervously.

"So everyone says." Ryou more or less confirmed, and the man broke into a small smile before tilting his head slightly.

"Yuusha-sama, you don't consider yourself a hero?" The man asked in what seemed genuine curiosity.

Snorting Ryou took on a crocked smile. "Sir, the most heroic thing I have done since getting here, was saving this little lady's ball from the tree, hardly proper qualifications for a hero, no?" Gesturing towards the tree in question. The man if anything looked even more amused then before.

"Haa, but its not the magnitude of gesture itself that counts, its the intention behind it."

Ryou, looked taken aback before replying with a small frown, "I don't think that's how it works, if it was, everyone would be a Hero, just for doing one good deed."

The man still possessing the same smile, continued unabated, " Then why don't you take Rasha's opinion in consideration." The man said patting the little girl in the head, who had been watching the exchange in curiosity, "After all, at least to her, you are certainly a hero who saved her ball from the mean tree, right?" He asked the girl, Ryou felt his ears getting slightly warmer, the man had heard that particular statement.

That question however, seemed to spark something in the little girl, since she was now looking at him with wide eyes. "You are a hero? Like the four legendary heroes? Which one?" The little girl, who he now knew the name, Rasha, asked in a voice filled with what could only be described as awe.

"I'm the Bow one, Rasha was it?" She nodded slowly, face completely mesmerized like she couldn't believe he was really there, before another thought seemed to pop in her mind.

"Do you know the Tate no Yuusha-sama?" She questioned, and he looked confuse before replying.

"Yeah I know him, why?" What could possibly have been her interest in Naofumi. She looked down before replying in a small voice.

"Well it says in the legends, that the Tate no Yuusha-sama is always really nice to demi-humans, so…"

_Ohh, right, that was a thing.._, Remembered Ryou, it wasn't Naofumi himself, but the Shield Heroes from the past had always treated demi-humans with decency, and in a country that discriminated against them, meeting him was probably like a dream come true.

_Even then for some reason this is irking me__…_

Hardly a couple of hours had passed since he left the castle, and he was already second place to Naofumi as far as a little girl was concerned. In the great scheme of things, especially with the perils that lay ahead, this was mostly meaningless, and yet…

"Haha, but you know, the Tate no Yuusha isn't known for rescuing balls from the mean trees, that's the Yumi no Yuusha's job you know?" Had it been petty? Yes, extremely so, but he felt the need of approval, even if it came from a ten year old child, he had his pride after all, perils of the future or not. He certainly did not miss the amused cough that came from behind him, but he ignored it. Rasha for her part seem to ponder this before coming too a conclusion.

"Yeah Yumi Onii-chan is really nice too." He was taken aback by that statement, and it had been follow by an almost but not quite, shout that came from behind

"Rasha, you cant treat one of the Heroes so casually!"

The noble was rubbing the bridge of his nose, but Ryou waved him off, "Its fine don't worry, I don't mind." He didn't mind it, not really, with everyone throwing his title everywhere, it was nice to have someone from this world that would speak with him casually, a breath of fresh air actually, even if it came from a little girl.

"Hey, hey Yumi Onii-chan, can you sign my ball? Then I can show everyone in the village that I met you!" She extended the ball in his direction, and Ryou scratched his cheek.

"Sorry Rasha... I don't have anything to write with…" He was then interrupted by an object that appeared in front of him.

"Ahem here you go Yuusha-sama, after all the lack of a pen should not be an obstacle for the Yuusha-sama who is so superior to the Tate no Yuusha-sama, right?"

_Opps he caught that one__… _Thought Ryou with embarrassment, he hadn't been subtle in the slightest, and it had come out of nowhere, but the thought of being second place to Naofumi… Naive, idiotic, Naofumi right off the bat, didn't seat well with him.

Picking up the pen, one of the old ones that he never had the opportunity to wield in his old world, he couldn't help but take a second to marvel it. It was most likely made of gold with beautiful engravings all around it,. Grabbing the ball he scrawled his signature in it, before giving it back to Rasha. She took it, looking at the signature before reading, and mostly butchering his name.

"Ryou… Takuma?" He laughed a little at her pronunciation nodding.

"Yup that's me." Rasha, repeated it a couple of times before a wide smile was in place.

"Thank you Yumi Onii-chan." _She knows my name, and is still going with that... Well whatever__…_ Ryou thought with amusement.

"I don't mean to interrupt the moment, but we really need to leave, we still have to make the trip back to our village." The noble said, and Rasha, accepted it with good grace even if her smile did diminish a little.

"Okay, will I see you again Yumi Onii-chan?" Rasha asked, and with a smile Ryou patted her on the head.

"I'm sure you will Rasha." She seemed delighted, both at his answer, and at the pats.

"Until next time Yuusha-sama, and the best of luck, for all of our sakes..." The noble conveyed with a drop of seriousness, the meaning not lost to Ryou, who nodded firmly.

Waving the pair goodbye one last time, Ryou continued on his way towards the inn, though his thoughts still lingered on them. From what he could recall demi-humans in Melromarc, were mostly, if not exclusively slaves, and taking in consideration that the man had been a noble, it would made sense that he 'owned' Rasha, yet she did not possess any signs of abuse, or of being mistreated, she appeared like a completely normal, and happy child, their relationship looked more like daughter, and father than anything else.

_Who would have thought, not all nobles in this world are scum, faith in humanity, slightly restored__… _

However that had been the exception not the rule, there were a lot of demi-humans out there that weren't nearly as lucky…

A picture of another small girl this one with raccoon features, suspended in the air, with her wrists cuffed, while being whipped appeared in his mind, and Ryou couldn't help clutching his arm with a frown on his face.

* * *

Finding the Inn had been a rather shameful affair he would admit, it had taken two entire trips up, and down the same street, before getting tired, and asking for directions, although in his defense the Inn had no signs signaling it as such, it looked just like any other house the only difference being the door slightly opened.

The rental of the room had been another struggle altogether, it turned out that reservations were not a thing in Melromarc, that particular fact had left both himself, and the clerk confused, without being able to understand one another. Thankfully the manager had come to their rescue, and after some explaining he understood what Ryou wanted.

The way Inn's worked in Melromarc were among the lines of - One could only rent a room for the night, and had to vacate the next day, if someone wanted to spend two nights, he had to talk to the manager for approval. A very retarded system or so Ryou thought at the time. However while not common practice, his status as Hero had once again shined through, and the manager had reserved a room for his personal usage for the next five days. Having one of the Heroes as a semi-permanent guest would probably be very good marketing, if you weren't Naofumi that was.

The room itself had the most basic of features, those being a bed, one bedside table, and a wardrobe, it did however possess its own private bathroom so there was that.

Ryou, had also spotted a couple of taverns on the other side of the street, and the Inn also served simple meals, yet they were on a schedule, but that solved his food problem.

Now with a place to call a temporary base, it was time to plan the next step. Exploring the rest of the town would be a must, he had to visit a Blacksmith, and Apothecary. Come what may, he wouldn't set foot outside the town without some armor, and a hefty supply of health potions.

This had also been the perfect time to explore the help menu for more information that he didn't already have, something that took a fair amount of time, and testing, but all in all had proved to be very rewarding.

Amount a plethora of information Ryou had discovered how his stats actually worked. The attack attribute had been self explanatory, it related to how much damage he would be able to deal, it also loosely translated to his own physical strength. Both defense, and magic defense were also easy to understand, basically it meant a reduction on the damage he would suffer if hit, it also included pain resistance, something that made him swear out loud since his defense attribute was the lowest one he had by far. Magic was directly related to both the power of his spells, and the ability to cast them, he had no idea how to even go about it, so it would be another thing to explore.

Agility however had been interesting to read about. It was the highest of his attributes right next to attack, and from what he could gather it related to his overall speed, and nimbleness. That meant that he could get faster, probably much more then the average human could move. It would be his biggest defense mechanism, essentially if you weren't Naofumi who would eventually be able to just stand there, and tank hit after hit, your best bet would obviously be not getting hit in the first place.

The idea of getting in an out of combat in a blur, or simply vanishing was a very interesting one indeed. It also brought another idea to the table, a cheesy little thing called kiting. If he could achieve good enough values on agility, and if it did indeed translate to what he was thinking, he could stay ahead of whatever monster he happen to come across, as long has the creature didn't have the means to attack him at long range.

There had also been another couple of interesting discovery's, that he tested. The first had been the existence of something called Navigation Ability, and as to what that was, it was simply a GPS like map that he could open from the menu, infinitely helpful, even if it wasn't the most detailed of maps, showing just the outline of the buildings around him, but it also came with the ability to place bookmarks. Ryou had been positive, that such a thing didn't existed in canon, another divergence from the story most likely, or maybe the weapon had come to his help, and created a new type of ability. Either way he would no longer need to memorize places, although it would have been useful to know about it sooner, especially during his questioning session with the guard.

The second had been the discovery or semi discovery of his own personal pocket-dimension. He also had his doubts if it had been something that existed in canon, since he could remember, that Naofumi had Raphtalia carry a back pack with their camping equipment. In all honesty he had no idea what-so-ever on how the bloody thing worked, and why it came with a weight limit, since the weapon apparently had the power to teleport people across dimensions, or universes, even able to change matter, form, and defeating gravity, but they couldn't be bothered to carry more then one hundred, and fifty kilos. At least he had a safe place to put his money where no one else could reach it.

All-in-all things were looking up slightly.

Making his mind, and since he still had plenty of day light to burn, Ryou decided to hit the streets once again.

* * *

After leaving the inn, Ryou decided to take his time surveying everything around him, bookmarking the most relevant, or interesting places. It was during his trip that he found the medical store by chance, even if he had more or less been looking for it. Unlike the Inn, the Medical store was advertised has such, or at least Ryou thought so, since it had huge letters above the door, now if only he could have understood their meaning.

The owner was an old man, with a strict no nonsense attitude, and apparently cared very little for his Hero status. He had been helpful though answering any question that Ryou had.

In essence there were far to many potions, and concoctions to count. From high regenerating ones, to slower regeneration but larger duration ones, and that was not even counting antidotes, medicine, or MP, and SP restoration potions, there was a option for every situation, and for every need.

Ryou, had chosen to take a dozen of low to medium quality ones, enough to heal anything from a light scratch to rather deep wounds, and able to stop bleeding. He had also been wrong in his assumptions. Initially he had thought that Healing potions just increased the speed of regeneration of the human body, but that had been a wrong assumption. The principal was the same, only that the potion created new cells to repair the damage, out of itself apparently. The science behind it was lost to Ryou if there had been any to begin with.

He had also bought a high quality all-purposes healing potion, and that one alone had cost him one gold coin, expensive yes, but according to the old man it could heal anything besides lost members, and vital organs. He had no intention of ever being in a situation where he needed to use it, but it was better to be safer then sorry. There existed only a couple of medicines stronger, with one being something of a legend, made from the sap of some divine tree.

Ryou wanted nothing to do with a divine tree, after all the last mention of a divine tree came from another manga in his old world, and that particular one came attached with a murderous goddess hell bent on ruling the world, while turning every human into sapling mutants in the process, so that had been a very big no in his opinion, the current potion in his possession would have to do. Messing with deities always ended up causing all sorts of problems…

The last place to visit would be the blacksmith, there was one that he vaguely remembered the location, the one the guard had personally recommended.

He did eventually reach the blacksmith after bugging a few of the villagers for directions, his GPS didn't came with pre-marked locations unfortunately.

Once again he couldn't even begin to understand the letters on the tablet next to the door, but Ryou knew eventually he would have to sit down, and learn how to read the language of Melromarc. At least he had came to the right place, if the emblem of a shield with what looked like a buster sword in it was anything to go by.

Opening the door, he took a peek inside, the lighting inside the store was dim, but his eyes did see an assortment of weapons, and suits of armor.

"Excuse me…" Ryou exclaimed, before going through the door.

His sight did zero in on the swords displayed, even if those weren't the reason for his visit. He would never be able to wield one, but they still had the awesome factor of being swords. Maybe he did feel a tiny bit of jealousy towards Ren.

"Well what can I do for you kid?" A jovial voice asked from the door in the back.

"Excuse me I was…." Ryou begun, but stopped the moment he took in the owner. The man was tall, taller then he was, shaved hair, with a brown rough beard ,and a scar under his eye, a small friendly smile on his face.

In front of him was the very same blacksmith that had helped Naofumi on multiple occasions, Erhard.

"What's the matter, cat got your tongue?" He asked in jest, and Ryou couldn't stop the small smile that appeared on his lips.

_Well now... Would you look at that, he really is the most sought out blacksmith in Castle Town..._


	6. Betrayal

**A/N****:** This chapter took a little longer to get out, had to edit it twice :/

Anyway here we go, Ryou finally makes good progress, and the story moves forward.

* * *

**Chapter 6. Another World: Betrayal**

"_What's the matter, cat got your tongue?" He ask in jest, and Ryou couldn't stop the small smile that appeared on his lips._

_Well now... Would you look at that, he really is the most sought out blacksmith in Castle Town..._

Erhard continued to look expectantly towards him, and Ryou stopped his musings, of admiring the sheer coincidence.

"Yeah, sorry about that, you just reminded me of someone, that's all." Ryou, deflected awkwardly.

Erhard shrugged. "Well you would be hard pressed to find someone like me...Name's Erhard by the way."

A large rugged hand was extended towards him, and Ryou took it before replying. "Nice to meet you, name's Ryou, Ryou Takuma"

Confusion appeared on the mans face. "That's a weird name you have there."

"Yeah, I'm not from around here." Ryou confirmed with a small smile, prompting the other man to look at him curiously, while crossing his larger arms over his chest.

"Yeah, it shows, with that name, and those clothes you're wearing... Actually they do look familiar." Brown eyes studied, the young man in front of him.

Deciding there was no point in hiding it, Ryou materialized the Legendary weapon, before continuing. "Yeah, if my clothes are familiar, then you probably had a costumer with a weapon that had a jewel just like this one, it could have been a shield too." Ryou finished, pointing at the yellow jewel on his bow.

Erhard, looked surprised for a couple of seconds before bursting out in a roar of laughter.

"Would you look at that, my little shop is getting really popular, having two of the Legendary Heroes drop by in the same day!" He exclaimed after calming down, and Ryou felt amused at the man, he was exactly the same as in canon.

"Well, I'm looking for protective gear, and apparently your craft speaks for itself if so many people are recommending it." The compliment brought a grin to the blacksmith's face.

"Damn straight it does, all my gear is top notch, and don't you forget it, kid!" An identical grin appeared in Ryou's face as he turned the weapon into a bracelet again.

"It better be, I would like to avoid having to drag myself here, half dead, asking for my money back." Ryou challenged, and the grin on the blacksmith's face grew wider.

"Kid, if you get yourself hurt while wearing my equipment, you only got yourself to blame."

With a shrug Ryou continued the Banter. "What kind of justification is that, isn't normal policy that the costumer is always right?"

"Of course, until I have his money, that is…" Erhard replied now in a serious tone. The reply brought out a genuine laugh from Ryou. The seriousness in which the man had stated it, and the honesty that had been present, confirmed that the blacksmith's personality was an exact copy of the one in the Story.

"You! I like you! You're my kind of guy alright!" Ryou declared, after getting his laugh under control. It had actually been the first time he had laughed like that since coming into this world, probably a good while even before that.

"So now that the pre-purchase banter is done, what exactly are you looking for kid?" Erhard asked bending over the counter, crossing his arms over it.

"Well, the main thing I'm looking for is something that will protect me, without sacrificing mobility" If his attributes behaved like a game, then the one that would show the biggest development would probably be Agility. Agility, meant speed, and he didn't want to hinder himself, especially if the plan was to avoid attacks.

Erhard scratched his beard, pondering before explaining. "Well if you want just slight protection, without sacrificing any mobility then Chain Mail might be your thing. Other then that, the only thing I can think of, is Leather Armor, it might take a while to get used to it, but you wont sacrifice much mobility, and it will offer some serious defense."

Ryou took in the explanation, bouncing the two possibilities in his head. Chain Mail had little weight compared to normal armor, but it offered little protection from his small understanding, especially since most monsters likely packed quite the punch. Leather Armor on the other hand would be heavier, and he would loose some degree of mobility, but would offer a lot more in terms of protection. Eventually the need to feel safer, won over the more nimbler option, even if it slightly contradicted the overall plan.

"Okay, show me what you have in terms of Leather Armor, and I will go from there, something around the three hundred silver."

What happen next, would have made his sister call him an hypocrite, since it was literally the biggest clothing tryout session he had ever endured, normally he would run out of patience after fifteen minutes, this one had taken forty-five. It certainly took a while before he had something that satisfied him, after all even if Leather Armor looked reasonable, he still felt ridiculous in it, not even worth mentioning that it wasn't all that comfortable.

In the end he picked a Leather Armor set ,minus the helm, and gauntlets. The chest piece was a reddish brown color, with a double layer of leather. the shoulders were strapped on the chest, also in layers, ending with black leather adornments. The rest of the set, was much the same, from the skirt to the arm armor. Ryou couldn't get over how ridiculous the helm looked. and it actually blocked a little of his peripheral vision, and the gauntlets made it hard to fire the bow. He also chose to pick a few sets of 'local' clothing, they also felt weird, but he couldn't exactly use his shirt under the armor, on the positive side, he could now fit in with the locals, even if it made him look like a country bumpkin. At least they also came in black.

Finally out of the small dressing room, Ryou checked from his perspective how it looked, bow in hand. He still felt slightly embarrassed, even if he now had clothing on par with his new 'job'.

"Out of curiosity kid, but do you even know how to use that thing?" Erhard asked, pointing towards the weapon in his hand.

Ryou closed his eyes briefly before frowning. "More or less, tending heavily into the less part at this point, I mean... I know the basics, but that's it."

Upon hearing that the blacksmith had also developed a frown on his face. " A Legendary Hero not knowing how to wield his weapon? Isn't that a sad thing… You know, I can let you practice in the back, thats where I test most of my weapons, bows included, it would be better to try it here, then out there, right?" Erhard proposed. Hearing the proposition, Ryou couldn't help but to feel slightly suspicious. No matter how much he acted like canon, there was always a catch.

"Do you offer the same treatment to the rest of your costumers old man, or am I just special?" Erhard only looked slightly confused, before responding honestly.

"Well, you can't buy my gear if you're dead. Besides I have a feeling that you will be a big costumer in the future."_ Well I can't really argue with that logic..._ Ryou thought to himself before deciding to accept the offer, it had also rung true that getting a little practice in a safe environment would be in his best interest.

"Okay. I'll take you up on that offer. Who knows, maybe some practice will actually help me come back, so you can bleed me dry of my hard earned money." Another laugh escaped Erhard, before the man slapped him on the back with enough force that he almost kissed the floor, throwing a glare towards the man Ryou followed him into the back.

* * *

The back, as Erhard had said turned out to be a small back alley kind of area. It had a few tables most likely where the blacksmith worked on his craft, and what could only be a forge.

After a few minutes of rummaging through a pile of materials, and other tools, Erhard had finally found the target. A standard target if Ryou had ever saw one, white, round with a small red circle in the middle, three wooden legs supporting it.

After the target had been set, Erhard moved to lean against the wall, slightly behind Ryou. Ryou for his part moved into position, raising his bow.

_So I know I don't need to carry arrows, but how exactly does it work..?_

After a few moments of visualizing Ituski's usage of the bow, Ryou moved his free hand against the jewel, and pulled. Nothing happened, He tried again, this time with two fingers bent inward as if grabbing an invisible arrow before pulling. This time the result had been different, slowly the fletching appeared from inside the jewel, the rest of the arrow followed until Ryou had the full thing in his grip

Looking at the bow, and arrow, Ryou could only feel a slight bit of disgruntlement. _You are just going to keep bending the law__'s of reality left, and right, aren't you..?_

Finally, eyes fixed on the target Ryou leveled the bow with it. Taking a deep breath he waited for a moment, before releasing the arrow.

…Thunk…

…Silence…

Ryou blinked a couple of times, at what had just happened.

"Pretty good, for a first shot from a beginner." Erhard complemented from behind. The arrow had hit the target, right in the middle of the red circle.

Shaking his head slightly, Ryou once again took aim, and after a few moments released another arrow.

…Thunk…

Eyebrows raising into his hairline Ryou took in the sight before him. A couple of millimeters at most from his first arrow, was the second one, still very much in the center of the target. Taking aim once more at the target, Ryou quickly release a third arrow.

…Thunk…

"Remind me again, how many times did you say you shot a bow before?" Came the voice from behind him, and Ryou could easily detect an hint of skepticism in it.

"Err two?" Ryou answered with both confusion, and hesitation, almost sounding like a question. Three arrows were stuck in the middle of the target.

Taking position yet again, eyes narrowing at the target, Ryou let the arrows fly in quick succession.

…Thunk…Thunk…Thunk…

_What the actual fuck__… One or two I can buy it! But six?! There's no way I have this good of an aim._

Looking down Ryou decided to raise the challenge up a notch, picking a small piece of concrete, he hurled it into the sky. Taking aim quickly he felt it, the moment before he released the arrow, an unknown force pushed his bow down slightly.

…Thrak…

The piece of concrete shattered on impact making little stones, and dust, fall on them. Eyes widen, and mouth wide open, Ryou looked down at his weapon with disbelief.

_Ohh__….My…God…Don't tell me…_

A window popped up in front of him, and there displayed in large letters, it read…

**[Divine Protection of the Bow - Passive Skill]**

Looking below Ryou read the description…

**[The Legendary Bow bestows upon the wielder amazing marksmanship, in addition the bow will always correct the trajectory in order to hit a target.]**

_Ohhh__…My…Fucking…God…_

He couldn't really help himself, he threw his arms upwards shouting in pure happiness.

"Yes!Yes!Fucking Yes! You stupid, magical, piece of shit! I love you so much right now!" Ryou proceeded to kiss the mentioned weapon, his thoughts moving at miles per hour.

_This thing comes with a auto-aim bot installed!_ That released an enormous burden from his shoulders, Ryou had after all been terrified over his ability to fight from nearly the beginning. His goal from the moment he realized the situation, had always been to survive. However if he couldn't even fight, what hope did he have. And after all those agonizing thoughts, it turned out his ability to fight had never been a problem in the first place.

_I can fight now, I can shoot stuff now!_

"Kid… are you alright?" Erhard asked hesitantly, and Ryou turned around with one of the biggest grins he had ever made in his life .

"Dude did you see that?" Ryou asked, excitement oozing from his entire body. Erhard on the other hand only raised an eyebrow.

"What, the fact that you are some kind of archery prodigy?"

Ryou shook his head, before replying. "No dude, that's not…" and stopped. In his euphoria he hadn't thought about it, but in reality how many people knew about his new-found ability, especially if he had only just discovered it? For all intents an purposes it might very well be a secret. Erhard had all but proved to be every bit of a good guy as his canon counterpart, but still..

_Isn't this the entire reason I choose to adventure alone in the first place__…_

"Yeah lets go with that…" Ryou concluded, and Erhard, already raised eyebrow moved a little bit upwards but he didn't offer any more commentary.

Thinking about it Ryou couldn't help but to realize that his new ability was the literal definition of cheating, how many years of practice would it take to pull off those kind of shots. He had read somewhere, some random forum or something that Itsuki's ability to shoot had been attributed to some psychic power. Ryou was pretty sure that he didn't possessed that kind of ability in either worlds.

_Is it possible that, since I don__'t possess that psychic ability, the Legendary Bow went ahead, and granted me the Divine Protection to compensate for it..? _Looking back at his weapon he couldn't help the smirk that formed on his face.

_You sneaky little shit__…_

* * *

After making the most amazing of discovery's so far, Ryou went ahead and paid for his new gear, that now also included a long black hooded cloak. He decided that it did look cool, and more then that it went with his new ability, most rangers wore a hooded cloak after all. Maybe there had also been a small part of his brain that would always associate a long cloak to bad ass characters, that had been a troupe in a lot of anime's. When someone wearing a cloak appeared he just knew the the character was most likely going to be a bad-ass.

Although lets be honest here, nobody can pull out cool while wearing a cloak like anime characters can...

The total of Ryou expenditure had come to be around two hundred, and ninety silver, more than a quarter of his saving, but at least his defense had all but tripled, even if he had been pretty sure that Naofumi had more than that at level one.

After promising Erhard, that he would definitely come back, before leaving, Ryou now faced a new dilemma. The new discovery about his bow had left him with a feeling of anticipation. He wanted to try it out some more, and he still had a couple of hours of daylight. On the other hand he still felt quite nervous about the idea of setting foot outside of town.

It took a little to measure the pros, against the cons, but eventually he decided that he had to do it. Between his new gear, ability, and a stock of potions he couldn't be more prepared, besides the wave would certainly not wait for him to get mentally ready, and he couldn't afford to lose anymore time.

A small expedition outside for now, would be enough to get his feet wet.

* * *

With the gates of Castle Town behind him, Ryou couldn't help but to feel a little ashamed. He had actually hesitated to cross that border for a few seconds, and now that he had done so, there existed no difference, no gigantic monster ready to devour him. Beyond the gates were instead of gigantic monsters, farms with farmers out, and about. The fact that there were civilians out here, most likely meant that the monsters were not has threatening as he had thought.

With his bow now in hand, Ryou began the trek beyond the farmlands, into the small hills that composed most of the scenery before him. Eyes scanning for any signs of danger, it hadn't been until his third hill that he finally saw something unnatural.

On the end of a slope, unlike what the anime had portrait, the creature in his sight was not completely round, more like pumpkin shaped with bright luminous orange eyes, and a small mouth full of serrated indentations that looked like sharp teeth. On closer inspection it looked a lot more like a jack-o-lantern then an actual balloon.

The orange creature hadn't spotted him yet, so Ryou got himself into position, taking aim at the orange monstrosity before him, and holding his breath for a moment he finally released his arrow feeling the bow correcting his aim.

With an echoing popping sound the creature burst into small weightless orange remains. The sound of the experience window appearing startled Ryou a little, however the feeling of adrenaline, quickly went away.

_That__… _Ryou thought after a moment. _…was really underwhelming… _

The orange balloon had definitely looked menacing, more so because he had never seen a monster in real life, but Ryou had expected some sort of fight.

_A fight from a monster Naofumi used has a punching bag to vent his frustrations__…_ A traitorous part of his brain reminded him.

And once again he thought about it, the monsters here couldn't be that threatening if farmers were living so close by. And on the off chance that anything more dangerous actually came out, the knights, and adventurers would probably take care of it within the hour. In hindsight his apprehension on stepping out of the town might have been slightly exaggerated.

Moving towards the mortal remains of the Balloon he had just killed, Ryou picked one piece up, his fingers feeling the thin, and rubbery texture.

_How in biology__'s name do these things even work? Actually how the hell, do they float..?_ And like most things in his new world he had no idea.

He brought the piece close to the jewel on his bow, After a while it began to shine in a yellow light, and Ryou felt the air being sucked like a vacuum before the orange piece in his hand disappeared into it.

So it works exactly like Naofumi's… Another window opened in his vision showing what appeared to be a colossal skill tree, with far to many icons to count, hundreds probably thousands of them, especially since the window while zoomed out still had a lot more to scroll both horizontally, and vertically. One particular icon was shining, and focusing his vision there, it zoomed in, showing a new bow with the very original name of Orange Bow.

_Seriously who the hell design this, at least have some creativity__…_ Because, Orange balloons unlocking a Orange Bow seemed like some serious lazy naming.

Looking around the new window, it show cased the stats were actually lower then his original bow, however on the equipment bonus tab there was a measly plus two on agility, it had no skills though, and it hadn't even been unlocked yet. The requirements showed that he had one out of three Orange balloon remains needed to unlock it.

_So the system isn't that easy.._. thought Ryou. It appeared that multiple remains would be needed in order to unlock the bow, and it was probable that there would be bows that needed different items altogether.

Picking up another piece of the Orange Balloon, Ryou feed it to the jewel, before looking around for more. After scavenging the immediate area he found out that the monster had only dropped two remains, so he set out too find more Balloons.

* * *

It hadn't actually been that long, before Ryou found more Balloons, and for something that floated in the air, they could move very fast, thankfully they were also very easy to spot even at a distance, not even counting the red arrow that the creatures had above their head. Thankfully despite their speed, he had the Divine Protection, and could deal with them in one shot, before they came anywhere near him, although there still existed the danger of one sneaking up.

After popping eight orange monstrosities he had increased his experience by a small amount, but it would take some time before he reached level two. At least he had enough materials to unlock his new bow.

Finally grabbing the final orange remain, now that there was no more balloons in sight, Ryou gave it to his bow, a warning window appeared that read: unlocked.

Like he had noticed before his new bow actually decreased his stats, however he was curious about the equipment bonus.

Reading through all the information provided, and related help windows, Ryou had discovered that his bow possessed a mastery bar that would increase with usage, when mastered it would give him permanent access the the equipment bonus even while wielding other bows.

Ryou couldn't honestly remember if that particular information had been shown in canon, but either way he couldn't help but to think how overpowered that was.

_Is this why Naofumi even at lower levels could keep up with the other Heroes, and eventually left them in the dust..?_

_It couldn__'t have been just that..._ Ryou thought, unless the other heroes had focused only on the strongest weapons they could find. Sure the strongest weapons probably provided amazing bonus, but in the long run it would be completely inefficient. Like wielding a level sixty weapon at level one, it would probably be amazing for a while, but eventually the monsters level would rise, and they would have a really hard time keeping up. After all if Motoyasu had a weapon that gave him three hundred defense, and Naofumi had one hundred shields that gave him three defense, in the long run Naofumi would have the advantage, because the attributes would be part of him no matter what shield he used. That would actually make him a walking tank.

_And that actually happen didn't it..?_ Ryou thought, before shaking his head. So either the other heroes upgrading system didn't possessed a stacking element to it, or it did, but they had chosen to ignored it for how small it was. In any case, mastering all the bows he could get his hands on, definitely sounded like the way to go.

"Orange bow!" Extending his arm, he watched has his Legendary Weapon changed form, into a Orange version of itself the only difference being instead of the wings like ornaments, there were now serrated indentations similar to the balloons teeth.

Deciding to test the boost Ryou broke into a short dash, taking sharp turns, and trying out all kinds of rapid movement. After a bit, Ryou realized that he couldn't in fact feel any difference. Logically thinking, the two extra point in agility accounted for less then a five percent increase, so it only made sense that the difference wasn't notable. Maybe if it added twenty points, instead of two the difference might have been notable. Either way he would get those points, and far more through leveling and mastering more forms of his Legendary Weapon.

* * *

By the time Ryou decided to call quits on his so called Hunting Expedition, the orange colors on the sky were already fading, and a few stars could be seen.

He had made good progress, with a few more kills under his belt, and of different variations. Balloons came in different colors although their behavior stayed the same. Besides the far more common orange ones, he had killed a yellow one, and a couple of red ones, their drops consequently unlocked bows of their respective colors, however much like the Orange Bow, the equipment bonus, were mostly the same.

The mastery bar on his new bow, had hardly made any progress, less then a tenth had been filled. Apparently the progress was tied to the bow in usage, although that had begged the question, since everything died on one shot, Ryou couldn't be certain if it was on a kill basis, or hit based, what he could tell however was that he had to hit a monster for there to be any progress. It would have been nice if he could just unlock a ton of bows, and then spend the reminder of his time shooting some random tree for mastery progress.

_That would have been nice, and very easy to exploit__…_

* * *

Castle Town was as lively in the evening as it was during the day, with merchants still conducting business, and adventurers going on and about. It might have been because of the appearance of the Waves, everyone was trying to get has strong as possible in order to survive, not just the Heroes.

Feeling his stomach rumbling in protest reminded Ryou of the need to acquire, and consume food. He had spent most of the day running around, and then hunting, with his last meal being the lunch he had at the Castle. It would probably be a good idea to stock up on food the next time he went out, and about, he had his own personal moving storage after all.

Scanning his surroundings, he found a tavern that seemed as good as a place as any. The process of ordering had been mostly normal, if not for the eyes, and murmurs that followed him every single step after he had entered the establishment. He didn't even had his bow out, and yet everyone still recognized him.

This was something that truly bothered him, he was used to be by himself, and do his own thing.

Unlike the food served at the Castle, the one served at the tavern was a lot less glamorous but it had a homely taste, and feeling to it. Still with all eyes on him it had been uncomfortable to eat like that.

After paying for his meal, Ryou quickly made his way back to the Inn, the attention getting to him, thankfully no one had come forward, and started a conversation.

Finally calling it a day, he laid in bed contemplating everything.

_I made very good progress, and things are finally looking slightly up, especially thanks to that cheat code of a skill that I have__…_ Ryou thought with some relief, though it quickly turned more somber when an image of a fan wielding woman came to mind…

_I could leave it to Naofumi, but I can't be sure things will play out exactly has they should, so I have to get stronger, much, much stronger, or Glass might just put an end to my life__…_ Unlike monsters, the fan wielding women, was human, and that made her far more dangerous, not even counting the overwhelming power she had... Those were Ryou's thoughts before falling asleep.

* * *

It was the harsh knocking on his door, followed by someone shouting for him that arose Ryou from his slumber. Rubbing his eyes, quickly rising from the bed, far more than a little angry, Ryou made his way to the door, his anger present on every corner of his being. The act of interrupting his sleep was a more then tested method to piss him off, it had been something that extended towards most of his family his father excluded, the man had always been a morning person.

"Yeah what the hell is it?!" He snapped the moment he opened the door, and the guard on the other side paused, arm raised in the air, looking in apprehension before replying.

"I'm sorry to disturb you, Yuusha-sama, but his Highness called for an emergency meeting." The guard explained, arm lowering to be parallel to his body.

Ryou had to resist the urge to tell the guard, that the King could go do himself, before calming down.

"And what is this meeting about?"

The guard look nervously from one side, to the other. "Well... I only heard rumors, but apparently the Shield Hero his being brought in, on the charges of sexual assault."

_Here we go... _"If Naofumi is truly guilty, there is no reason for me to be present? Right?" The guard seemed taken aback at hearing his question. Ryou honestly just wanted to avoid participating in the shit show that would unfold.

"But his Highness has requested that all Heroes have to be present…" And of course the king would want all Heroes present. He wanted the maximum exposure possible, making absolute sure there existed no doubt in anyone's mind to what a terrible 'monster' Naofumi was.

"Yeahhh, I politely decline, tell his highness that if the Shield Hero is really guilty, then I shall conform to the Kings judgment, and punishment, there's no need for me to be there..." And Ryou proceeded to close the door in the guards face, not even allowing the man to finish whatever objection he had been about to raise.

Ryou did pity his fellow hero for the injustice that had befall on him, however there had been nothing for him to do. Even if Ryou took to Naofumi's defense, he had no prove, it would be both of their voices against that of an entire country. The only thing that would happen would be a lot of closing doors, plus a target on his back that he wanted to avoid at any cost.

_I'm sorry Naofumi, I really am, but like you, I also want to live, and that means that for the time being... Its every man for himself__…_ Even if Ryou couldn't subdue the guilt that emerged from that decision.


	7. Progress, Realization, and

**A/N: **Finally this one took a while to get out, life is a really annoying thing sometimes :P

Anyway, here it goes, and the plot thickens

**Chapter 7. Another World: Progress, Realization and...**

_I'm sorry Naofumi, I really am, but like you, I also want to live, and that means that for the time being... Its every man for himself… Even if Ryou couldn't subdue the guilt that emerged from that decision._

After getting ready for the day, Ryou decided to hit the forest beyond the hills, intent on making has much progress has he could, and if possible to take his head off the situation that was most likely happening right now.

Going for supplies, mostly food for the day, although he had also bought a few miscellaneous items, like a small knife, a Wood Axe, a Pickaxe, a shovel, and even some cooking utensils. All the things a new explorer should have with him, before going on an adventure. After that he decided to go out through the eastern gate. His reason for that was simple, Naofumi, had meet Erhard in canon, before going into the forest in an effort to vent his frustrations. Erhard store was located in the western part of Castle town, a hundred meters or so from the gate. This would put him on the opposite direction from the shield hero. Ryou had no intention of meeting Naofumi right now, much less with the wound still so raw.

* * *

Starting his second monster hunting session, he decided to make is way slowly into the forest, he still needed to unlock the rest of the colored balloon bows.

It took most of the morning to get enough remains, but after nearly forty balloons he had done it. Hunting balloons was an easy affair, although some came particular close to him, and one had actually sneaked on him from behind, lodging itself in his sides. Even with the thing munching on him, it didn't hurt, because of the armor, but the sight spooked him a little. Having a Jack-o-lantern wannabe monster trying to sink his teeth on his belly was disconcerting to say the least

One interesting discovery, was the appearance of a new bow after he had unlock all three colored ones. After questioning its appearance, Ryou had reach the conclusion that it was a special bow unlocked after completing the entire series. This one, was simply called Balloon Bow, and while the stats on it were much better then on any of his other bows, the requirements were pretty steep. Not only did it need another ten remains of each balloon, but it also came with a level twenty restriction. On the other side it offered an ability, called monster encyclopedia. After playing so many RPG's it was easy to understand what it was, it was a bestiary. A very nifty thing, that Ryou definitely wanted to unlock down the line. For now, though, it would have to wait, level twenty was a goal he doubted he could reach before the wave.

It was after a quick break for lunch, that Ryou made is first true error in judgment.

He had made his way into a clearing in the forest, a small open area surrounded by tree's, and bushes, Taking a look around, he quickly spotted the three balloons on the other side of the clearing. Easy prey, Ryou thought, and with that in mind he took aim. One had been killed instantly, after the first shot. By the time he had ready himself to kill the second, they were already halfway through the clearing. After the second one was dead, Ryou, measured there would be no time to kill the third one, so he threw himself to the side to avoid it, or tried to at least. The moment he tried to avoid the creature, he almost got whip lashed, and landed on his rear, by the time he had regained his bearings the balloon was inches away from his face, startled, Ryou put his arm in front of his face to protect himself.

Pain was the first thing that registered... Not as much as unbearable, but it had been so unexpected that he gritted his teeth. Looking towards the end of his arm he saw the cause. The orange monstrosity had sunk its teeth on his hand. Trying to shake the thing amounted to nothing, the creature had no intention of letting go of his hand.

"Motherfucker, let go!" Roared Ryou, before grabbing the accursed thing, ripping it from his hand, and throwing it towards the other end of the clearing.

The aggressor righted itself, and hopped twice before an arrow exterminated its existence.

Breathing hard, Ryou lowered his bow before inspecting the damage. Four small puncture wounds on the back, and front of his hand, deep enough to draw blood but not much else.

Taking a look behind him, Ryou saw what had caused this particular bad encounter. His cloak was entangled in a thorn bush, one that he had neither seen, nor felt.

_Are you fucking kidding__…_ It took a moment for everything to sink in, and when it did Ryou placed his palm over his face.

He had carefully thought every one of his steps, taking all precautions he could think of. Rationalized every little thing. But apparently he had forgotten the most basic of things... common sense.

_Because bringing a long hooded cloak to a dense forested area is such an amazing idea, right..?_ Ryou thought sarcastically.

The bloody thing had look cool, that had been the biggest motivator for buying it, not even taking a second to think about it logically. And now, he couldn't help but to feel a spark of anger towards himself, out of sheer stupidity.

The cause for his anger hadn't been the damage to the cloak nor the damage to his hand, the true reason being what the mistake trully represented. He had made a mistake in judgment, a very easy one to overlook, and the price had been paid. It was pure luck that the enemy had been a balloon, but if it had been anything more dangerous, then that small error could have sent him to an early grave. Why? Because the bloody cloak looked cool, nothing more.

Calming himself, and taking a seat he looked at his hand again. The bleeding had mostly stopped, leaving only a faint trail of red in his hand where the blood had leaked. Looking at it carefully another thought crossed his mind, one far more solemn, and grim.

In the exaltation of discovering his ability, and spending hours pretty much one-shooting everything, he had made another mistake. The very same mistake that had been responsible for the death of every single one of his characters back when he played games in hardcore... Arrogance. He had developed a false sense of security, one attributed to the small amount of power he now wielded. That false sense of security had put in his brain, the assumption that because one arrow was enough to kill everything so far, there existed no danger. The wound on his hand would be a reminder, a reminder that no matter what kind of power he wielded, his existence would always be that of a mortal, and that wouldn't change even if he had one hundred levels.

If the balloon had been just a little faster, it could have sunk its teeth in his face, and he could have lost an eye. He had to remember that he wasn't Naofumi, he couldn't afford to tank hits… Ryou had come to that conclusion the day before, but apparently it hadn't been enough for it to sink in.

_This really isn't a game__… No matter how many times I have told myself that, somewhere in my mind I still assumed it was, on some level at least…_

He had to be even more careful, and mindful of everything not just what lay in front of him, or he wouldn't survive for long.

With those thoughts in mind Ryou shoved his tattered cloak inside his inventory.

* * *

The rest of the grind had come, and gone in a flash. Ryou, continued to level up, although far more carefully this time, taking into consideration both the monsters, and the environment, not wanting to repeat his latest blunter.

Collecting an assortment of plants, remains, and other materials, had Ryou unlocking bow after bow, some of them giving a passive increase in stats, others just non-combat abilities, very much like Naofumi's shields in canon, but he was using the Shield Hero's upgrading method so it only made sense that his own progress was similiar to his.

The process of utilizing his new bought tools was an interesting one. He already knew that wielding anything else besides his bow would result in a nasty shock. A fact that had come true when he tried to cut a small tree. So after thinking about it, and remembering that Naofumi had been able to more or less use a pickaxe he decided to absorb the small woodcutting axe, not sure what to expect.

**[Woodcutting Bow - Equipment Bonus - +1 to Woodcutting Technique, Serrated Shot]**

The description on the new bow was quite weird. The new skill, had the name 'Serrated Shot', yet it suffered a penalty on damage, making it less efficient then his normal arrows. What it allowed, was for his arrows to cut down trees, and wood. Interested on how it worked, Ryou released his new skill on the small tree, watching as the arrow impacted with the trunk, and downed the whole thing, with a loud crashing sound. Upon closer inspection he could see an almost perfect cut on the remaining stump.

_So it can cut a tree perfectly, yet it has a penalty against monsters..?_ Once again, the system behind his own legendary weapon was a confusing blend of real life, and video game logic. It made no sense, realistically, yet in a weird way it made sense if you were in a video game - gathering skills, where never used against mobs.

_I think its this kind of crap, that makes the others believe this is a game__…_

Leaving those thoughts behind, Ryou unleashed his arrows on the trunk of the tree, watching has each one went through, and trimmed it perfectly, until he was left with nothing but planks of different sizes. While an interesting ability, that might be handy to have down the line, right now it was mostly useless to him. Picking a small plank he let his Bow do its thing.

**[Woodwork Bow - Equipment Bonus - +1 to Woodworking Technique]**

_Carpenters all-around the world, cry in despair, for your Nemesis has arrived..._ Ryou thought in amusement before releasing a snort. It would be a good ability if he ever decided to buy a house, and furnish it. Other then that he doubted that making wood furniture would be a good choice for money making.

Ryou then repeated the process with both the pickaxe, and the shovel for similar effects.

**[Mining Bow - Equipment Bonus - +1 to Mining Technique, Drilling Shot]**

**[Digging Bow - Equipment Bonus - +1 to Digging Technique, Tunneling Shot]**

After a few tests of his new weapons, Ryou came to the conclusion they worked in the same manner as, the previous bow. While not particularly useful, he was sure that having the ability to dig things out, and mining ores would definitely be a boon somewhere down the line.

After that he had resumed his grinding session, taking upon himself to switch between bows every time he mastered one, trying to master has many as he could. This process had the benefit of raising his stats, though the one that increased the most by far had been agility. He had also gain access to abilities like gathering, butchering, fishing, and blending.

He had entertained the thought of dipping into the blending ability, there were certain benefits to be able to make potions of all kinds, although after a while he decided to leave it for now, after all the only potions he actually used were health restoring ones, and they were not that expensive.

It had actually come has a surprise that he could easily break even, just by killing low level monsters. Balloon remains went from one to three cooper each, depending on the color with Orange being the cheapest. and most common, however Usapil pelts for instances, could go from twenty to fifty cooper depending on the quality, and condition. Honestly the first one he had killed had left his stomach quite queasy, Usapils unlike Balloons actually bled, and sometimes survived the first arrow which resulted in a bloody mess, not even counting the whole butchering process.

* * *

After spending the great majority of his day hunting, Ryou had returned to town, dropping by one of the monster materials merchant to sell the surplus of remains, and other materials.

It was during this trip that Ryou realized something, at every single corner almost everyone had been gossiping. It had only been a day, and apparently everyone already knew what Naofumi had supposedly done. Like every piece of gossip ever, especially on a medieval era like town, the facts where already being stretched out beyond normal proportions. One variation that he heard from two old ladies that had not been regulating their volume, detailed how the other heroes had been called to detain Naofumi, himself included. That had been an interesting story... Especially since he had not laid eyes on the Shield Hero after leaving the Castle, although in part he had made an effort to avoid the said hero.

_If they could convert gossip into experience points, there would have been no need to summon us, in Melromarc..._ Even the common civilian would have been able to one-shot anything the waves could have thrown at them…

Although once again, he could almost bet the reason behind the rumors, having spread as far, and as fast has they had, could be attributed to his Majesty, the king of douchery, Aultcray.

On a slightly more positive note he had been able to level up, from level one to five in one day. Honestly that was more progress then he had expected, and even more impressive was the boost to his attributes, especially since almost all of the bows that gave passive attribute bonus, focused on agility. The biggest improvement from leveling besides agility, had been on attack, obviously, and surprisingly enough on his health points. Ryou had yet to figure out how the health points system worked. The Balloon that bit him hadn't inflicted any damage, so… How did it work exactly?

One possibility would be that only life threatening wounds counted, or maybe it didn't need to be a life threatening one, a grave wound would suffice. Or a third possibility was, the damage had been so small it didn't even registered.

No matter what theory rung true, Ryou had no hurry to test them, even if he knew that it would happen sooner, rather than later.

* * *

Laying on his bed, arms crossed behind his head, Ryou found himself skipping through the help menu. So far the menu had been a well of information that hadn't been explained in canon, He had to question why the others hadn't bothered reading it. Motoyasu, and Ren were one thing, they both thought the whole thing had been a game, so maybe they were afraid of the 'noob' stigma that came from using it, or maybe they just hadn't cared enough. But, Naofumi, he had actually been showed looking at it, and yet he had failed to grasp things like the teleportation system between others.

It was partly due to these deep musings, that Ryou suffered his third, less then gracious fall, since arriving in Melromarc.

"You seem to be doing well Yuusha-sama…" The voice broke through the silence of his room, Spooked Ryou made a move to raise himself, the problem came when instead of his hand meeting the bed it met nothing but air, and the result of such action send him tumbling into the ground.

"A word of advice if you allow me, Yuusha-sama, you really need to work on your landings." The now familiar voice held a tone of amusement that put a glare on Ryou's eyes. Raising his head he took in the familiar mask of the woman, that had also send him tumbling into the ground on his first night in Melromarc.

The 'Shadow Maid', he had started to call her that, at least mentally, had taken a seat on his now opened window. How had she been able to not only open the window from the outside, but done so without him noticing he honestly had no clue.

"And who, exactly, is it, that has made it a hobby, of making sure, I end up on the ground, every time she makes an appearance?" Ryou growled out, now moving to take a seat on the bed. The Shadow Maid still had the same small smile on her face that almost looked mocking.

"Your faults, are you're own Yuusha-sama, I simply thought prudent to finally announce my presence, it was you who failed to correctly measure the size of the bed." Although that actually rung somewhat true, Ryou couldn't help the urge that arose from within, a urge that told him to send the woman to a very nasty place, before calming himself.

"If you are going to keep popping in like this, at least have the decency of warning a guy beforehand." And Ryou most definitely heard a less then ladylike snort, that came from her direction.

"I'll take that into consideration next time..." So there would be a next time, Ryou contemplated before launching a question.

"So why exactly have you come? A lady climbing up to a man's window in the middle of the night, is pretty suspicious, and one might get the wrong idea..." If the woman had the intent of screwing with him at every chance, then he would pay back in kind.

"Well if you, Yuusha-sama had the decency of paying me dinner first... Then perhaps that wrong idea, might turn into a correct one…" The Shadow maid answered, with a coy tone, that left Ryou gaping at how easily she had turn the tables. He expected a woman from the medieval times to not be used to such a direct approach, and become flustered, but not only had she taken it in stride she had turned the tables on him, she knew how to play the game, probably way better then he did.

"Interesting propositions aside, tell me, Yuusha-sama, what is your opinion on Naofumi-sama's crime?" She asked offhandedly.

"Why do you want to know?" Ryou barked, and he couldn't help but to curse mentally, the defensiveness had come out as a reflex. He took a deep breath, and closed his eyes momentarily.

"Simple curiosity, I would like to know the thoughts of my preferred Hero, that's all." The fact that she admitted to have favorites, actually surprised him.

"So we are playing favorites now, are we?" Even in the darkness he saw her shrug clearly.

"I never went out of my way to hide that fact, actually its quite obvious, really... And you... Yuusha-sama are deflecting." The Shadow Maid had easily seen through it. Out of everyone he had personally met on this world, she was by far the sharpest one, and that also made her dangerous, very dangerous. Reflecting, he decided the best approach would be an half-truth.

"Okay fine, since you are so interested in it, here's what I think…" Ryou, interlaced his fingers on top of his lap, before continuing… "Naofumi... He didn't really struck me as someone who would do something like that, however we didn't spent that much time together, so while I have my doubts, I can't discount the possibility that he, actually did what rumors say." The woman just hummed in thought, before interjecting.

"No doubt that someone has observant has you Yuusha-sama, as already realized that our esteemed king holds no love for Naofumi-sama…" She stated, almost offhandedly.

"I might have noticed... A bit of concealed hostility..." Ryou conceded while a myriad of thoughts crossed his mind.

"It won't remained concealed for much longer I'm afraid, our Majesty as, lets say, a distaste towards the Shield Hero, and he's certainly not the only one."

Ryou closed his eyes momentarily, he had a small inkling of what the maid had been trying to point out, and he decided to take a leap of faith, and meet her half way.

"Are you, implying that the charges on Naofumi might have been fabricated?" Ryou questioned tone slightly more heavy.

"Perhaps they were, perhaps they weren't, I'm sure you will eventually find out which one is it." That almost forced a groan out of him.

"Will you ever give me a straight answer?" He asked in exasperation, the Shadow Maid actually had the nerve to released a small laugh.

"Yuusha-sama, next thing you know, you will be asking me to fight the waves for you. I cant do your job for you, now, can I?" Meaning he probably would never get a straight answer out of her, however…

"You know what... That idea actually has merit." Ryou stated in a joking manner, although, given the skills she possessed, the Maid would probably make a very nice party member.

She let out another laugh, before swinging her legs to the outside of the window.

"Unfortunately, I have other equally pressing duties to attend, for example I still have a report to make…" She trailed off, and Ryou released a sound of amusement.

"To that mysterious mistress of yours?"

"Indeed, but before I take my leave…" she paused, and turned her head in his direction before continuing, "Here's a little piece of interesting trivia, although his Majesty might be making some very questionable decisions as of late, he's still the King of Melromarc, that fact hasn't changed... He will never stand for people who profit from the fear, and devastation brought about by the waves... He might have turned a blind eye to it in the past, especially if it helped in his crusade, but he won't risk angering my mistress anymore than he already did, on that front at least." She finished, and Ryou could only stand there confused.

"That…" he begun "…is completely random information, how the hell is that even useful?" The only thing he could gather from that statement, was that the maid pretty much confirmed who her mistress was, if even the king threaded lightly around her.

"Just something to keep in mind, I'm sure this little piece of knowledge will be useful to you in the future. Well until next time Yuusha-sama, and don't die out there... You are my favorite after all." And the accursed woman actually had the nerve to send him a flying kiss before disappearing.

After she left, Ryou couldn't help but to mutter, "What actually was the point of that..?"

Following what had been another sleepless night for the most part, Ryou continued to lay in bed. His thoughts throughout the entire night were focused on the Shadow Maid, and their second encounter. The woman once again came, and went like the wind, leaving more questions then answers.

One of those questions pertained to Naofumi, he already knew that the charges against the Shield Hero had been a set up. The woman however hadn't been aware of that fact, so she appeared to try, and point him towards the right direction, perhaps in hopes he would give Naofumi a helping hand.

The Queen knew for sure that her husband, and the church had quite the hate for the shield hero. In the original canon, if he could remember correctly, she actually went has far has to send Melty to remind the King that he should play nice with Naofumi. But if the Maid, and the Queen by extension knew what kind of person he was, then they should also know, that Ryou wouldn't throw himself into the fire to help Naofumi. It didn't matter if the people at large thought he was a hero, Ryou was far from being that righteous, so what had been the point of that? Had she just done it to plant the seed of doubt in him..? Was that her aim all along..?

Another question had been the complete random piece of information she had left him with. The only thing he could collect from it at first, had been the fact she pretty much confirmed his suspicions about her mistress being the queen. The woman had after all confirmed that even the king was wary of her mistress, had that been her goal? To point him out that the true power in Melromarc rested with her mistress?

That fact made no sense, since it hadn't been a secret that the country worked on an Absolute Matriarchy.

_Or maybe it was..._ Ryou, contemplated, after thinking deeply about it. That fact wasn't exposed until Melty herself stated it.

Before that, there had never even been a mention of a queen. Perhaps the King, and the Church of The Three Heroes, moved to suppress that particular piece of information, while the Queen had been out, and about in the other countries. That actually made some sense, because they couldn't have the other Heroes question the King's authority, Naofumi most of all. After all if he found out before hand, about the existence of someone, who possessed more power in the country then the King, then he might have become desperate enough to take his chances with that person. Knowing Naofumi the probability of that happening would be pretty low, with his trust issues, and general distaste for nobles, but the King would never allow such a thing to pass.

Besides that there was the last piece of the random message. '…He will never stand for people who profit from the fear, and devastation brought about by the waves...He might have turned a blind eye to it in the past, especially if it helped in his crusade...'

What about Raphtalia's village..? How had that benefited his crusade? Had that happened because the demi-humans worshiped the shield hero, and the king decided to turn a blind eye, like the maid had mentioned... If that was the case it made a little bit of sense... After the wave, the knights themselves laid waste to the rest of the village, and sold the inhabitants into slavery. Sure the orders might have come down from some other noble, they did appear to have some amount of power over the military forces of Melromarc. But even if the orders for such a thing, came from someone else, like that bastard of a noble that had owned Raphtalia, and her childhood friends, that kind of actions reached the king's ears for sure, and he took no action at all as far as Ryou had been aware.

The only conclusion that he could make would be that taking out the village would cut some support towards the Shield Hero, and that definitely helped the king in his anti-shield hero movement.

_All of that destruction, and suffering... For what..?_ Ryou didn't actually knew the reason behind Aultcray's hatred towards the Shield Hero, he had no recollection of it being explained in the Story.

_Not that it actually matters, the man will continue with his hatred even when he is forcibly brought down to his knees__…_ Something that had actually happen in canon.

Well there's no point in speculating, for now that has nothing to do with me, even if I wanted to help, I hardly have any power to do so... The only thing that truly matters for now is getting stronger, and surviving…

With that though Ryou got up from bed, it would be another day of Monster Hunting after all…


	8. The Hunt Part One

**A/N:** Here it goes another, chapter, this one took a while to get it just right, partly because I spent a little to much time overthinking things.

Also a great thank you to everyone, and for reaching 200 followers.

Well here it goes, things are about to get slightly serious for Ryou.

* * *

**Chapter 8. Another World: The Hunt Part One**

_Well there's no point in speculating, for now that has nothing to do with me, even if I wanted to help, I hardly have any power to do so... The only thing that truly matters for now is getting stronger, and surviving…_

_With that thought Ryou got up from bed, it would be another day of Monster Hunting after all…_

A funny, and embarrassing detail that Ryou had completely forgotten, embarrassing because of how long it had taken him to realize it, had been the following - back on his original world, Ryou used contact lens. It took him three whole days before realizing they weren't in his eyes, and apparently he didn't need them anymore.

After getting hit, and subsequently summoned to this world, if he were to go with his theory, then the legendary weapon had healed apparently also extended towards his bad sight, and more. In hindsight a bow hero with bad eyesight would have made a very pitiful, and hilarious thing indeed. He had also been able to easily get up in the morning, and spend the entire day without an headache - no doubt he no longer had a need for caffeine, the healing effect also extended towards his smoking addiction. All in all the legendary weapon had the ability to pull out even more extreme 'miracles' then he thought possible.

Getting ready, Ryou still had to take care of some other business before he could restart his grind.

Going out into the streets, it had been obvious what the topic of nearly every conversation in the air was. Naofumi had gone from notorious, to pretty much the most hated person in town in the span of two days. There were also rumors how he had threatened some merchants into buying items from him. Hearing that one had made Ryou's lips twitch a little, an ingenious use of _balloons_, one that only Naofumi could put in practice, since for the average Joe, _balloons_ could be quite dangerous even to another hero - he knew that much now.

The one thing he wanted to do before going out, was getting a hold of some protective hand gear, he had discarded the idea of using gauntlets because inhibited his ability to shoot arrows, and it was far too cumbersome to shoot in rapid succession. Some gloves were in order, leather ones, if he had a pair he might have avoided the accident from the day before.

Making his way into Erhard's store, Ryou wasted no time in making his presence known.

"Hey Old man! Your favorite customer has arrived!" Ryou shouted since the man was nowhere in sight. It only took a couple of moments before Erhard's voice shouted from the back.

"Whoever told you that you were my favorite customer?" Finally appearing from the door, cleaning his hands with a dirty rug, most likely from whatever work Ryou had interrupted.

With a pointed look towards the blacksmith Ryou couldn't help to respond, "Are you saying I'm not? And here I thought we had something special…"

"The only thing special about a brat like you is your money, and that thing on your wrist!" The blacksmith returned without missing a beat.

_Ouch... even if its not particularly incorrect__…_

Eyes taking on a more challenging glare, slightly turning his body Ryou pointed towards the door with his thumb. "Then maybe I should take my money somewhere else, if that's how I'm going to be treated…"

Raising his hands in surrender, Erhard was quick in trying to defuse the situation.

"Okay! Okay! So maybe I do favor you more then most of my other customers, so much so, that I might be willing to give you a slight discount! How is that?"

Turning back, and coming towards the Blacksmith, grin present in his face, Ryou crossed his arms over the counter, "Now we're talking, I knew we had something special."

Looking relived, yet releasing an huffing sound Erhard also bended on the counter. "Yeah... Yeah... So what do you need brat?"

"Well... It turns out, I need something to protect my hands after all…"

Erhard scratched his beard, "I showed you the gauntlets that made part of that set, and you refused them... Had a change of heart?"

Laying his face on his arms Ryou replied, "Not really, they were awkward to use... I was thinking something among the lines of leather gloves..."

Erhard hummed in contemplation, "Well I have all kinds of those, just let me get them, and you can pick the ones you like the most..." Erhard made a move towards the cabinet at the corner, when the sound of the door opening reached both of their ears.

Turning his head, Ryou could only think about how bad his luck had to be, when he took in the new costumer.

_Are you kidding me?! The one person I wanted to avoid..! I knew this was bound to happen but seriously?!_

For his part the new guest had actually realized who was also in the store, eyes narrowing, and frown deepening.

"Ryou…" Naofumi snarled between clenched teeth. That shook Ryou out of his reverie before, he too narrowed his eyes, before taking a breath to calm himself, and nodded towards the Shield Hero.

"Naofumi…" He greeted, his tone bland. The Shield hero dismissed it with a scuff, before making his way into the counter, passing Ryou, and placing six silver coins on the table.

"Old man, I need a weapon she can use. Keep it under six silver." He pretty much ordered, and that was when Ryou noticed the small figure next to Naofumi.

Brown hair, with a small pair of fluffy looking ears popping out of her head, she was really a scrawny thing to look at, but her eyes were the worst, Ryou noted - in them existed no happiness, there was nothing at all in there.

_Raphtalia__… God's she looks like a zombie, for a child to have eyes like that... This world really is fucked up… _She was nothing but a child, but she looked like she no longer had a will to live, no one that young should look so defeated.

"Kid... You…" Erhard trailed off, before releasing a sigh, and moving to the corner. After picking a small dagger the blacksmith threw in some other gear, and handled it to the small girl before gently pushing her towards the dressing room.

The blacksmith turned to look at the shield hero, who had leaned against a corner with his arms, crossed and eyes closed, intent on ignoring everyone. With another sigh the man went back to his resting position on the corner.

Ryou had finally taken his eyes off the dressing room, they had followed the small demi-human since he had seen her. With a cough in his fist he broke the silence.

"Well... Since the little one his getting ready, now would be a good time for you to show me what you got...". Erhard just looked confuse, most likely forgetting about his request, after what had unfolded.

"Ohh yeah! Right! Let me get that for you..." Erhard, snapped his fingers, before moving towards the cabinet once again, and after picking a few pairs he laid them out on the counter.

Ryou proceeded to try out the gloves, although he noted that they mostly felt the same.

"So... What brought this sudden need for gloves?" Apparently the Blacksmith needed to break the awkward silence, that had fallen once more.

Ryou who was in the middle of trying out another pair of gloves, took on a pinched expression,"Lets just say I had a run with a fellow that decided my hand would make a nice chewing toy, and leave it at that." A snort came from the corner, and Ryou's face twitched in a bad way.

_Fine... Have it your way, Naofumi__…_

"And you know old man, unlike the ones that have the title of Tate no Yuusha... Who can just stand there tanking hit after hit, us normal folk actually have to buy defensive gear." Ryou finished hands raised in the air in a 'what can you do' fashion.

"Tchh, your talking pretty high, and mighty, for someone who actually has a weapon. Don't talk like having a shield is a good thing, You don't know what this is like..."

Ryou actually straightened himself, and was about to send a not so amicable reply towards the other hero, when the curtain from the dresser room opened.

"Master... I'm done.." The small demi-human murmured looking down at the ground.

Naofumi took a couple of steps uncrossing his arms before stopping at the center of the room.

"Took you long enough." he snapped followed by an apology from the small girl.

"Whatever... Raphtalia draw your sword!" he ordered before pushing his cloak away revealing a _balloon_ very much lodged on his sides. Raphtalia, stepped back with a shriek at the sight, before falling backwards.

"I want you to stab it!" Naofumi ordered again, grabbing the Orange monstrosity between his hands, and holding it in front of himself.

"N-no!" Raphtalia, refused in panic, before bending, and whimpering in pain as purple lightning arched around her.

It had been one thing to see it in a screen, it was a completely different one to watch in real life, Ryou clenched his teeth at the sight.

_This is just wrong..._

"You're just hurting yourself... Do it!" He ordered once more, and the lightning stopped has the little girl followed through, clenching the dagger between her hands,she darted forward with a shout. The dagger got caught between the _balloon's_ teeth.

"That's not gonna work! Put some back into it!" Naofumi shouted, pushing the balloon back, and Raphtalia who had been pulling her dagger almost fell again. Righting herself she darted forward once more and this time her dagger hit true, the _balloon_ popping from existence.

The experience window appeared in Naofumi field of view, and has he started conversing with Erhard, Ryou turned his attention towards the small girl who was now once again on the ground.

"You okay little one?" Ryou asked gently extending his hand towards her. Raphtalia for her part only looked surprised at being addressed before nodding, and hesitantly grabbing his hand. With a small heave she was back on her feet, and not a moment too soon since Naofumi decided to address her.

"From here on out, I expect you to kill monsters for me, and in exchange I'll protect you!" He declared, and Raphtalia's expression changed from afraid to confused during Naofumi's declaration.

"Kid, you're not going to die a painless death…" Erhard remarked after observing the whole thing.

Naofumi actually looked pleased at hearing that, "I'll take that has a compliment."

"I'm pretty sure it wasn't one." Ryou said in aggravation, sure the entire thing had happen in the story, and was needed, yet there were other ways to motivate the small girl into fighting.

"This isn't any of your business Ryou so don't butt in." Naofumi seethed before turning back, and going towards the door.

If Ryou's patience had been low before, the dismissal just now had made it reach dangerous levels, and he had to close his eyes while taking a deep breath to calm himself before, he did something he would regret. It only took a couple of moments before he addressed Naofumi who was at the door now.

"Naofumi…" Ryou called out making the shield hero stop in his tracks, "...look your right... It isn't any of my business, and a shield isn't even a weapon so you need someone to fight for you... I do get that. Just…" Ryou paused before taking another breath, and continuing, "...just take into consideration that she's still a child, and since she's a slave, chances are that she had it even worse than you." Ryou pleaded to the shield hero, who looked perplexed before his face changed into a snarl.

"You don't get anything at all! You haven't the slightest idea of what, I have to go through daily, so don't talk like you do!" Naofumi snarled, his body shaking in barely suppressed rage.

Taking another breath, Ryou looked directly into Naofumi's eyes that almost burned with anger. "Once again your right, but let me tell you something. Right now everyone hates you, but you know what? They aren't going to win in the long run, because for better, or for worse you are the Shield Hero, and they need you, maybe not now, but eventually they will have no choice but to rely on you to save their asses… However, if you start lashing out everywhere, you will bring down not only yourself, but also everyone that might have sticked with you… Think about that…" Ryou finished, and something from what he said appeared to have reached the Shield Hero since his expression turned sullen, his anger deflating like a balloon, before he turned around, and walked out.

"Lets go Raphtalia…" Ryou heard Naofumi mutter, and with that they were both gone.

Erhard let out an huffing sound, before commenting, "That kid... I don't know if he just got corrupted, or if its the entire country that's in the wrong…"

Ryou looked down, his eyes found the floor, yet his mind was somewhere far away, "You know went you look at this world from the surface, it looks amazing with Heroes, Dragons, and Magic... My old world had nothing like it, so for most people this looks just like a dream come true...However if you stop, and peak beneath the rocks, you will see that this world is as rotten as my old one, if not more so…" Ryou commented, with what he now knew was the truth.

"The world you came from didn't have magic, and yet you are saying its just bad has this one? I find that hard to believe, if your people didn't have the power to enforce their will on others, how did it ended as bad as this one?" Erhard asked in slight disbelief, however Ryou found a small humorless laugh escaping him.

"You think magic is the problem? No, just no, Erhard... Humans are the problem... We don't need magic, or special powers to be absolute bastards towards each other. This is true, in this world, my old world, or any other world were humans exist..." Ryou finished. At the end of the day, the entire of history as he knew it relating to his old world, was full of blood, and discrimination. It took thousands of years for some order to establish itself, and even then…

"Yeah... I get where you are coming from, I suppose.." Erhard conceded, before regaining some of his habitual exuberance, "But that aside, that was quite the speech you gave to the Shield Bro! Someone been practicing his hero charisma in front of the mirror." The blacksmith teased lightly.

That brought out another laugh from Ryou, but this one actually had meaning, and he shook his head in denial, "Not even close. I honestly don't know where that came from.. I guess, I just felt the need to say something…" trailing off Ryou looked towards the celling before continuing

"Naofumi isn't a bad guy... He just got dealt a bad hand, however if you only focus on the bad, eventually you will come to understand that while you were to busy hating fate, you might have lost all the other good things that you had, and when that happens, you will look back, and only find regret…" Ryou's voice sounded very far away in Erhard's hears.

"Kid, you're way too young to be sounding like an old man, talking about regrets, and what not…" And that put a small smile on Ryou's lips

"I suppose you are right, I'm still here after all, better make the most of it." Now was the blacksmith turn to laugh while he patted Ryou on the shoulder with a little too much enthusiasm.

"Now that's the spirit! So you can start living your utmost by paying for those gloves! After all, for me, money equals happiness, and I for one, love to be swimming in happiness!" Ryou released an actual laugh of mirth.

_Honestly this guy is really too much__… Thanks Erhard…_

* * *

The forest beyond the hills was home to a lot of creatures, strange was the fact that every single one of them was extremely aggressive towards humans.

Even things like the _Usapils_, were herbivores from what Ryou had seen, yet had no problem sinking there teeth in anything human, on sight.

It was during these contemplation's, that Ryou came across a clearing, similar to the rest he had come across. A wide space, surrounded by tree's, and bushes, however there was something different about this particular one... The moment he stepped in it, all of the hairs on his arm stood up, and a feeling of dread coursed through his body for no discern reason. Taking a look around, trying to find what was it, that was freaking his instincts out, Ryou noticed something shining in the bushes, reflecting some of the sun light that peered through.

Narrowing his eyes, Ryou slowly made his way towards the shinning object, looking from side to side, yet not seeing anything out of the ordinary besides the feeling of dread. His feet steeping in the dry grass with a crunching sound that echoed across the clearing, finally he saw it, the blade of what was most likely a sword peaking out of the bush, part of the blade shined, the other part was dirty with a dark brown layer encroached in it.

_Is that blood..?_

Crouching near the bush, Ryou looked a it for a couple of seconds before carefully grabbing the blade on the clean side, and pulling it out. It was definitely a sword, but what came with it made him fall on his rear with a startled gasp!

"Gahhh!" His gasp echoed in the trees. Eyes widen, in both surprise, and disgust he took in the sight before him. Attached to the handle of the blade still partly griping it, was a hand, or what was left of it, since it was mangled almost beyond recognition.

If before only the hairs on his arm had been standing up, now every single one on his body was pointing upwards, and he could hear his heart beating in his ears.

_Shit! I saw enough movies like Jurassic park to know were this is going..!_

No sooner had he come to his conclusion, a sound of twigs crunching reach him. With wide eyes he took a look in the direction of the sound, and all color drained from his face.

"Grrrrrrrr..." The thing growled, grey, and brown fur covered its body, standing on all four of its legs, lips pulled back in a snarl showing a rows of very sharp teeth, blueish slitted eyes locked on his being. Ryou's eyes narrowed in focus, an his dominant hand formed a semi-close fist, getting ready to call upon his weapon,

The thing that now could vaguely be identified has a wolf, move slowly in his direction, and another crunching sound came from the right.

Ryou refused to take his eyes of the monstrous wolf in front of him, for fear of springing it into action, but his mind did registered the sound.

_There's more then one__…_

Relaxing his hand, he put it flat on the ground, hesitating for a fraction of a second, before pooling all of his strength into his legs. He bolt backwards towards where he came, running has fast as he could, not even daring to look behind, where he heard something crash, more then likely in the spot he had been previously, followed by a snarl.

_Fuck! Fuck! Fuck! That is not a wolf! That thing is the size of a freaking Mastiff!_

Ryou keep running, far faster then he had been able to in his past life, jumping, and dodging all manner of obstacles from trees to boulders. Vaulting over a big root, that extended itself above the ground, blood pumping everywhere in his body, he heard the sound of paws hitting the ground behind him along with multiple snarls, yelps, and barks.

_How many are there!? _He still didn't dare to look back, afraid to take his eyes off the path. The forest was almost a blur. After weaving around a tree, he saw an obstacle in front of him, but not even that was enough to make him slow down.

_Shit! I'll never make it to the other side, but to hell with it__… _In front of Ryou was a opening where a river flowed rapidly from the mountain, and made his way to Castle Town.

Ryou had no idea how deep the thing was, but it probably wouldn't matter with how fast the water was flowing, either way the river had to be a better alternative then the monstrous wolves behind him.

He broke through the trees, and in a blink he ran towards a boulder on the riverbank half sunk in the water. Stepping on it without losing any speed he leaped, and to his very short astonishment he hit the ground on the other side a moment later, before rolling into himself. He was up in a fraction of a second, not even registering the few scratches on the side of his face.

One by one, they came out of the woods, five in total, far too big to be considered normal wolves, they stood snarling from a distance, stalking the riverbank. Ryou released his bow, and took aim before lowering it slightly, his eyes widening, and his face palling even more, a small shiver running through his body.

_My god__… _From the trees emerged a sixth creature, grey, and brown also covered his fur, but this one had patches missing, however there was a crucial difference between this one, and the rest. it was bigger, much bigger then the rest of the wolves.

_It's the size of an horse__…_ Ryou couldn't help but to make the comparison.

It came to a stop slightly behind the others, but instead of snarling, it just stood there, has if observing its prey.

_Is it the pack leader..?_

Ryou gritted his teeth, and raised his bow once more, big or not, the river made the perfect obstacle, they apparently couldn't fight from a distance, but he could. Taking aim, beyond the river at the middle one, he opened fire, releasing an arrow

...Tshack...

It hit near the shoulder, and the wolf flinched back with a whimper, red painting the green grass of the river bank.

...Tshack...

The second arrow hit it in the now exposed side, another whimper, Ryou took aim this time for the head, and released what would for sure be the killing shot.

...Tshack…

_What?!_ Ryou looked in disbelief at what he had just seen, he had fired the arrow intent on finishing the wolf he had aimed at, but moments before that arrow connected, another wolf at put himself in the way, and took the hit for his wounded companion.

He didn't had the time to think about it anymore, because a piercing sound, rung across the open area, the biggest wolf had released an howl, and Ryou winced almost covering his ears at the sound. The effect had been instantaneous, the other wolves scrambled back into the forest, the wounded one limping behind until only the Leader remained alone, observing Ryou, then after a few moments, it too disappeared into the forest.

Ryou just stood there trying to pull himself together, looking at his hand he took note that it was shaking. He had been incredibly lucky to be alive, good thing he had decided against fighting back, with those numbers he would have been torn to shreds.

Snapping himself out of trying to understand the last few moments, Ryou turned around making his way back into the forest, in the general direction of Castle Town, determined to put as much distance as he could from this place.

He covered about three meters, when he heard a loud splashing sound, and water rained down on him, turning around in a flash, Ryou surveyed the river noting something being pulled by the strong current. A flash of movement had him turn his eyes towards the forest beyond the river. Out of it came one of the wolves, quickly crossing the distance, and jumping across the river. The monster hit his of the riverbank side with its front paws, trying desperately to climb out of the water. The moment one of his hind paws made contact with the earth, an arrow hit it in the neck, and the wolf fell into the water.

Ryou had reacted on instinct, before he noticed on the other side all three of the remaining smaller ones breaking through the tree line. Ryou sealed his bow as he turned, and once again dashed away as fast as he possibly could, his ears picking up another splash,

"You can't be serious!" Ryou finally screamed, in a mix of astonishment, and fear while running at top speed. The god damned things just didn't know when to actually give up. He ignored the experience window that popped up on the corner of his vision, that he would later realize had been enough for a level up.

After a few moments the snarls returned, but he could finally see the hills, a few moments later he was out of the forest, his eyes taking in the glorious vision of Castle Town in the distance, yet a sound that sounded like voices reached him, and he quickly turned his head in that direction.

_This just keeps getting better!_ Ryou screamed in his head sarcastically, before making a split decision, slightly changing direction, and running. He reached his target grabbing it by the waist, yet ignoring the startled noise the figure made, and moved it on to his shoulder like a sack of potatoes, before dashing once again.

"What?! Ryou?! What the hell are you doing?! Ryou!" Naofumi shouted indignantly.

"Naofumi! Run!" Ryou screamed, and something on his voice must have showed how serious the situation was to the Shield hero, because he took a look behind himself, before breaking into a mad dash, teeth clench, and face pale white.

"Ahhhhhh!" Came a terrified scream from the bundle in his shoulder that had started squirming. No doubt Raphtalia had finally noticed what exactly was behind them.

"Raphtalia, stop squirming or you'll fall off!" Ryou shouted trying to keep his grip on her.

They crossed the hills in record time, Castle Town now quite in view, almost shining.

"Ryou stop! They aren't behind us anymore!" Naofumi shouted, and Ryou looked back confirming it, but not slowing down in the slightest.

_Fooling me twice, these things are not..!_ Ryou thought before responding. "They did this before! Don't stop!"

And he kept going until he reached the crossing bridge leading to the gate, the few farmers, and soldiers looking in curiosity yet he paid them no mind. After stooping Ryou set the Demi-human girl down, and hunched over, hands on his knees gasping for breath. It took a while to get his breathing under control but when he did, he took a look at Raphtalia. The little girl had her eyes wide opened looking into nothing, lip quivering, and shaking like a leaf.

Poor thing she's spooked out of her mind...Ohh… Ryou thought in pity before coming to the realization, wolves were similar to dogs, and she still had her trauma.

"Hey its okay, they aren't chasing us any...Gah!" Ryou started gently before something forced him around, hands grabbing the collar of his armor, he saw Naofumi right in his face, eyes narrowed in rage, and lips peeled back in a snarl.

"What the fuck was that Ryou!? Is everything else not enough for you people, now you are trying to get me killed?!"


	9. The Hunt Part Two

**A/N: ** Out of schedule I know, but after being stuck on writing a chapter for almost the entire pass week, my brain finally shift gears, and I was able to get a ton of work done this week. I got so hyped, that I decided to put even a little bit more work, and try to release two chapters this week. Expect the next one to drop on Friday as usual.

Well Ryou, finally reaches his limits, meets another familiar face, and...

* * *

**Chapter 9. Another World: The Hunt Part Two**

_"What the fuck was that Ryou!? Is everything else not enough for you people, now you are trying to get me killed?!"_

In the total sum of his short life, Ryou had only been grabbed by the collar twice, and both times ended badly… The first for the other guy, the second, Ryou, and the other guy ended making a mess out of each other's face. This once, Ryou tried to resist the knee jerk reaction for a slight moment, however he failed miserably. Later he could have blamed the adrenaline still running in his system, yet that would be a lie… In reality this was something that had been brewing inside him since coming to this world, Naofumi's crap being the push that broke through the last wall. The sound of flesh hitting flesh echoed in the bridge, yet instead of hitting someones face, Ryou felt like he had just punched a concrete wall. However it had the desired effect, because the Shield Hero was forced to let him go, taking a few steps back almost falling backwards, immediately his hand flew to touch the abused cheek, now sporting a lovely red hue.

Ryou had honestly expect the Shield Hero to follow through, and launch himself at him, yet Naofumi just stood there looking at him in complete disbelief, as if he couldn't believe what had happened. Whether the disbelief was from the punch, or the fact that it hurt, Ryou didn't know, but at the moment he also didn't care.

"The fuck is wrong with you?! I just saved both your life, and Raphtalia's, yet the first thing you do is accuse me of trying to get you killed?!" Ryou snarled at the Shield Hero. Naofumi finally broke out of his reverie, throwing a nasty glare at Ryou, rubbing his cheek.

"It wouldn't be the first time you people try to screw me over!" He hissed, voice laced with venom.

Ryou straightened himself, and glared back. "Get the fuck over yourself Naofumi! I know this world is set in the Medieval Age, yet, I bet they have already found out that the sun doesn't rotate around the earth, but apparently you missed that one!"

"The hell is that suppose to mean?!" Naofumi demanded, taking a step towards Ryou.

Ryou also took a step towards Naofumi hardly intimidated, before deciding to elucidate the Shield Hero, firing back with the same amount of heat, "It means, that not everything is about you, you egocentric bastard! And guess what? Not everyone is out to make your life miserable, I for one have far to many things on my plate to even entertain the idea of screwing with you! Do you honestly think if, I wanted the both of you dead, I would have grabbed Raphtalia, and warned you?" Hearing that appeared to take at least some of the aggression from Naofumi, though he maintained the glare, and after a second he let out a sound of disdain.

"Even if that's the case, we were making quite the bit of progress, and you ruined it!" He complained still with a bit of heat.

"Ohh for god sake's, now you're just grasping at straws… Cry me a river, or two while you're at it will you. However if that's the problem, then excuse me, if the fact that, I was running for my life, ruined you're perfect day!" Now was Ryou's turn to scoff, finishing with heavy sarcasm. Naofumi apparently just wanted to be a douche for the sake of being one, and honestly Ryou was already at wits end, with the whole 'the world is bad, so I have the right to be a bastard to everyone's', routine.

"Why were you running in the first place? Aren't you one of the great three heroes?" Naofumi questioned after a second or two, with a mocking tone.

_This guy! _Ryou though bristling, before answering.

"Last I checked I'm not part of any secret group called the three great heroes, even calling us four Legendary heroes is a stretch as it is… So don't associate me with random things just to feed your martyrdom… But that aside, from my point of view you were also running quite fast weren't you?" Ryou fired back at the Shield Hero who looked indignant hearing the accusation.

"You stole the only thing, I have as a weapon you idiot!" Ryou gaped looking completely incredulous, and both his hands went flying to cover his face, before 'exploding'.

"Ohh my god… Are you actually listening to yourself! You're the idiot! Your weapon is a waist high little girl with a pocket knife! And just look at her! She's shaking more than a tree in the middle of a Hurricane! If you had stayed back there the both of you would have been turned to shreds!" Ryou shouted, and the poor demi-human girl was still very much afraid, although she had moved to stand at her master's side.

"Well perhaps it would have been better to stay back there! At least I wouldn't have to look at your stupid face, and listen to some half baked excuses!" Naofumi shouted back, and Ryou clench his fists, and teeth's.

_Calm down Ryou, deep breaths... Take deep breaths, if you kill him, you will only screw yourself__…_ Ryou thought, and after a few deep breaths he tried to forced his body to relax.

"You know what? Screw it! I can tell that the only thing you want to do here is vent your frustrations… Anything I say to you falls on deaf ears. But don't worry Naofumi next time something like this happens, I'll just grab Raphtalia, and leave you to be wolf food." Ryou finished, before turning his back, and walking away. Honestly he had actually liked Naofumi as a character, however his real counterpart was just as stupid as the other heroes, or even more so at this point. Just because the world was screwing with you, didn't gave you the right to be an ass to everyone.

"Excuse me Yuusha-sama…" The man that approached him was a guard, in a full suit of armor, just like all the others, yet the most defining characteristic was the absurd amount of facial hair he had. Honestly if you were going to work in the 'military' the least they could do was look the part, although the idea behind it was probably to look rugged, and intimidating.

"Yes..?" Ryou almost drawled, far to tired to deal with anymore drama.

"I couldn't help but to have overheard your "conversation", if you can call it that, however you mentioned wolves, did I hear that correctly?" The man almost seemed amused by the entire thing, before turning slightly more serious.

"Yes, you heard correctly we were chased by a pack of 'big ass' wolves, you can ask that idiot he also saw them." Ryou replied waving towards Naofumi. The guard sent a scathing look at the shield hero before coughing in his fist.

"Hmm well yes, but, I don't think I can take his testimony into consideration…" The knight said emphasizing Naofumi, who for some reason had approach him yet again, and was in hearing range if the murderous look towards the knight was anything to go by. It was probably shitty from Ryou to feel slightly satisfied hearing that, but at the moment at least in his mind, Naofumi deserved it.

"Yeah well than take mine in consideration, it was multiple wolves, 'big' ones..." Ryou emphasized the word big, because he was one hundred percent sure there wasn't anything like that in his old world.

"Hmm... That sounds like Mountain Dire Wolves, but that's impossible… In all my years as a knight, I never saw them coming down from the mountains, much less coming this close to town…" The knight explained, a hint of skepticism present that made Ryou huff in annoyance, the day had been a goddamn emotional roller coaster.

"Okay fine… I don't know if they were Dire Wolves, or whatever but here's what happened…" Ryou recounted the events from hunting in the forest, to the point where he reached the clearing where he found the blade.

"...and they came out of everywhere, from every side besides the direction, I had come from…"

"A trap?" Naofumi wondered out loud, and Ryou came to a stop. He hadn't connected it, but now that Naofumi had mentioned it, it did made sense, however…

" You accused me of telling 'half baked excuses' just a moment ago... So answer me this... Why are you still here, Naofumi?" The said hero just crossed his arms, before explaining himself.

"The wolves are still out there, and I want to know what I'm dealing with…" With a completely unimpressed look Ryou let a moment pass, before supplying.

"How prudent of you…" Ignoring the glare, that at this point might has well be permanent on Naofumi's face, Ryou looked slightly down in thought.

_There was no other sound__… Just silence, like everything nearby had been scared away…_

The silence should have tipped him off, after all his gut had told him there was something wrong, yet Ryou ignored it, and then realization hit him. The wolves had been there from the start, they had laid a trap, and he felt for it.

"Since you mentioned it, it sounds plausible, the hand, the waiting, and then the ambush from all sides... They were hunting, and I was the prey…" Ryou concluded, realizing how lucky he had been, though his survival could also be credited to his agility, thinking back he had never been able to run that fast in his old world.

"I know wolves sometimes hunt in packs, but these ones sound a lot smarter... I didn't think they could mount such an elaborated trap…" Naofumi commented.

The knight took another side look at Naofumi, eyes narrowing again. "Yes, but the way you're describing it, it sounds like they were working together, Mountain Dire Wolves are solitary creatures from what, I heard…"

Ryou contemplated that, hand reaching for his chin, "Well they had a leader... I think…"

"A leader?" The knight asked incredulously.

"Well yeah, the normal ones reached up to my chest, but there was another one, on four legs he was taller than me…" Ryou explained suppressing a shiver, the goddamn monster had been honestly terrifying, like staring at a lion in the face, or muzzle.

_Only difference was, this one was bigger then a lion, and was not in a cage..._

"That sounds like a Great Dire Wolf, Yuusha-sama, but that only makes your story sound even more unbelievable, you see Great Dire Wolves are even worse than normal ones, they are far more vicious, even experienced adventurers would thread carefully around such a beast, and they would sooner eat the smaller ones, then hunt together, much less act as a leader..."

"Well, it was only for an instant, but it looked like it gave an order, and the others obeyed it..." Ryou implied, before recounting the rest of the events, from the strange protective behavior between them, to the wolves leading him into thinking he had been in the clear, to meeting Naofumi, and Raphtalia along with their mad dash to the gate.

"That's not like any other monsters I have seen, you're saying one of the wolves took the hit for another..?" Naofumi asked in clarification, and Ryou gave a nod.

"Yes, like it knew, I was going to finish it off, and got in the way to prevent it…" Ryou hesitated slightly, because the entire thing was still tripping him off.

"That, doesn't even sound like animal intelligence, it sounds like it moved to protect his pack mate, but with that, the trap, and making you think the left before attacking the moment you turn your back, that sounds like primates levels of intelligence, or worse…" Naofumi trailed off hesitating to finish his reasoning but Ryou had reached the same conclusion.

_Almost like humans__…_ And wasn't that a terrifying thought…But he couldn't measure this world by the same standards of his old one … Fitoria, and Filo had been monsters, yet they had also been quite human…

"It all sounds too unbelievable, but if its Yuusha-sama's word, then I have no option but to believe it." The knight stated ,nodding his head as if agreeing with himself.

_How reasonable of you__…_ Ryou thought in distaste. If it had been anyone else, reporting these events besides a noble, or the three heroes, the knight would have written it off as a fabricated story.

"Well, in any case, I will contact the adventurers guild, and the rest of the guards to see if anyone has gone missing in the area... I will also issue some patrols to search the forest, if they are this close to town, then it will be dangerous for merchants, and civilians to be out, and about. I bid you farewell Yuusha-sama, and thank you for your report, it will certainly help save a lot of lives... " The Knight finished with a bow, completely ignoring Naofumi.

"Well that's enough excitement for the day, lets go Raphtalia." The demi-human moved to follow her master, and was thankfully back to normal.

Ryou watched them go, before following in a slower pace. He had done his job, the rest was up to the knights, crossing paths with Naofumi, and Raphtalia had been an unexpected accident, so had been the following argument.

_The four heroes have to work together..._ Fitoria's words, whispered in his mind. He couldn't remember all the details of her conversation with Naofumi in the story, but the message was clear... Things would only get worse, much worse probably beyond even what he knew was coming… Ryou already knew that much. If they were to have any chance of making it through the waves, they had to stand together, even if the other heroes, (Naofumi not included) would turn out useless for the most part, or in Motoyasu's case, just make things worse. However from his understanding the four legendary heroes were the beings in this world with the biggest amount of raw potential, so there was that. In the depths of his mind he also knew he would have to work together with Naofumi, and that included playing nice. But he had a very hard time following through.

He knew what had happened, and was still happening at this moment... Ryou had an idea of how much Naofumi suffered daily... He knew all of that, but there was just something aggravating about the Shield Hero. Not only was Naofumi condescending, he just refused to listen, preferring to lash out at everyone.

Ryou tried... He really did.. But every five seconds in his presence, the Shield Hero did something to piss him off, and he would go back to fighting the urge to strangle Naofumi, or at least introduce him to his fist once more.

_Naofumi is fated to be the most competent of those three idiots, so eventually we will have to work together but that day won__'t be anytime soon, that's for sure…_

Ryou would love nothing more than to stand on the side-lines, and let all the drama unfold without getting mixed in it, however that was just a pipe dream. This world wouldn't allow him that for sure, and if he had to pick a side, well...

_There really isn't a choice is there... Hopefully with time Naofumi will chill a little, just like he's counterpart..._

With that Ryou made his way into Castle Town surveying an establishment where he could get some food, lunch hour had long since pass after all…

* * *

After eating, and taking a breather, Ryou decided it was finally time to hit the magic store. Magic while it was something that made no scientific sense what-so-ever, still existed, and was a fundamental part of this world, as such it was something worth exploring. His recent brush with death had taught him something… His normal arrows were not going to cut it, and since he had yet to unlock anything resembling a combat ability, there was no other alternative but to look into magic to widen his arsenal.

Unfortunately his trip to the magic store, while informative, had proven to be almost useless in terms of acquiring new abilities. He had already theorized it, but it still brought his spirits down a little... Magic simply wasn't something he could chant, and 'bam', instant fireballs.

The way the old witch, owner of the store had explained magic was that it worked, by pulling on his own magic power or also known as MP, and make it do what you wanted. The process of making it do what you wanted, was made easier by using an incantation. He had potential to use magic, he knew that, both the fact that Naofumi had been able to cast spells in the story, and the fact that the old woman could sense it in him proved it. The main problem was something different…

_How do I pull on something, I never knew existed__…_ Ryou thought with annoyance.

Apparently someone attuned to magic, could feel it inside someone else, but Ryou had been pretty hopeless in that regard. The advice of the old woman had been for him to spend time with a magic user, and eventually he would develop a sense for it. However Ryou didn't knew anyone in Castle Town that could use magic, or at least no one he wanted to be involved with...The old woman had the store to run so she couldn't help him, and he wouldn't go to Aultcray to ask for a favor, the less he owed the man the better.

So it was a dead end in that regard, not even mentioning that, besides his lack of magical sense, most of the spells, and theory involving them were locked behind another wall… letters, and the alphabet… Most knowledge had been recorded in books written in Melromarc's language. There were apparently some items that allowed to cast spells, without needing any understanding, although from what the owner had explained, those would cast nothing more then a 'water-downed' version of the real thing, but as luck would have it they were sold out.

The only positive thing had been the fact that he learned his own affinities. The old witch had tested him, and turned out he had a strong affinity for lightning magic, with a small one for support magic. But even that had a downside to it... Lightning magic would be the hardest to learn, only second to illusion, and healing magic.

Departing from the magic shop, Ryou had been so deep in thought, he actually missed the figure standing a few meters away until it spoke.

"Hey it's Ryou! Still going solo, I see!" The annoying loud voice almost echoed in the streets, and Ryou couldn't stop the tired sign that came out.

_First Naofumi__… Then I almost get turned into shreds… Then Naofumi yet again… And now this… It's definitely one of those days, isn't it..?_

Turning around he saw him, clad in red metallic armor, blond hair still in its ponytail with a wide smile, and spear on his shoulder.

"Motoyasu…" Ryou greeted inclining his head.

"Haven't seen you in a while Ryou, what have you been up too these few days?" The Spear Hero asked, and Ryou noted that he still carried his harem around, Malty included who was standing quite inside Motoyasu's personal space, if the guy even knew the definition of such a thing.

"Been around killing monsters, leveling up, getting gear, almost getting eaten by a wolf, things like that…" Ryou answered with a shrug, he decided to omit his meting with Naofumi for obvious reasons, one of those being the present company.

Motoyasu raised an eyebrow at that. "Almost getting eaten by a wolf? That's kind of lame isn't it..?" Ryou felt his face twitch in a bad way.

"In my defense it was bigger than you…" The eyes of the Spear Hero actually widened at that piece of additional information, before relenting.

"Okay slightly less lame… Actually never mind that, why didn't you come to the emergency meeting?! I know that you were informed of what Naofumi did!" Motoyasu demanded, and Ryou shrug again before turning to the side.

"Had better things to do, what Naofumi does, or doesn't do as nothing to do with me. He committed a crime, and the King handled it, my presence was hardly required." Ryou finished, and Motoyasu was looking like he couldn't believe what he was hearing, before gesturing towards Malty.

"He committed sexual assault! And your acting like it has nothing to do with you! Do you know what kind of horrors Myne suffered at his hand?"

_No__…But I do have an idea to what kind of horrors that idiot would love to inflict on her…_ Ryou thought with dark amusement looking at the mentioned woman. Up until that moment she had the same pleasant smile on her face, but the moment Motoyasu had mentioned the incident she immediately hugged her body, closing her eyes with lips quivering, and started shaking like a leaf.

_Weren't you just the happy bee a few seconds ago, now you're a terribly traumatized victim? You my lady, would make a fortune in Hollywood__…_

"Motoyasu here's reality, this world isn't going to save itself. I'm suppose to be a hero, or whatever, not a jury or judge, I'll leave that to those who have the qualifications for it, they will do their job, and I'll do mine." Ryou answered, however most of his attention was on the first princess… How desperate could Motoyasu be to not notice this...? Ryou didn't even need his foreknowledge to be suspicious of her, just a little thinking, and observing had been enough.

_Are__… Are those actually tears in the corner of her eyes..?_ Ryou questioned not really believing what he was seeing. And indeed after hearing his response she actually started forming tears in her eyes.

"That's really cold of you Ryou…" Motoyasu commented disappointed.

"Sorry, but, I really didn't think my presence would have helped with anything…" Was his answer trying appear apologetic. There was no reason to get on Motoyasu's bad side, annoying, and a idiot he might be, but Ryou had no need for another enemy… There were already enough in the shadows as it was.

"I suppose you are right… Even so, as heroes we have to show our support to the people, and even if Naofumi's horrible actions were his own, we have to take responsibility if another hero screws up!" The Spear Hero exclaimed clenching his fist in front of himself.

Ryou almost choked in laughter, doubling over, even then an ugly snort escaped him. _Ohh my god! The irony is just too much!_ The fact that Motoyasu actually said that, and truly believed it, only made the entire thing funnier.

"What?! Why are you laughing?!" Motoyasu demanded, and Ryou who had already cover his face with an arm, shook his head, and waved his hand.

"Its.. Its just... You really sounded like a hero just now..." Small miracle he had been able to keep a more or less straight tone while saying it. Motoyasu at least looked appeased, a smile returning to his face.

"Well of course! I am the Legendary Spear Hero you know!" Motoyasu declared proudly, slamming the bottom end of his spear into the ground to emphasize it.

_More like the Legendary Idiot__…_ This made his day slightly better, Motoyasu really was an air headed simpleton, there was no escaping that fate either in the story, or here it seemed.

"Motoyasu-sama… I don't feel so good, let's leave this place… It's giving me bad memories…" Malty finally made her voice heard, a whimper, and she actually looked distressed.

Motoyasu looked down at her with a worried look on his face, every inch of him the portrait of a knight in shining armor, he was just missing his horse.

_Well there__'s Filo, but she's much more likely to send him flying then to let him ride her for sure… Oh Shit..._ Well that sounded really bad in his head… Horrible, and very disturbing. Shaking his head of anymore disgusting thoughts, before he traumatized himself with a mental image Ryou focused on the conversation before him.

"...that guy, one day he will have what's coming to him, mark my words Myne!" They were back to bad-mouthing Naofumi, so nothing of value was lost. Motoyasu looked at Ryou, his mouth set in a more serious frown.

"Sorry Ryou but we have to go…" He apologized, and Ryou inclined his head.

"Of course... I don't want Myne to feel any worse…" _I should also pursue a career in acting one of these days__…_ Even if his voice had come out far too sympathetic, completely forced, if one had been paying close attention.

The first princess took a peek at him, batting her eyelashes a small smile on her face, "Ahh, Ryou-sama is an understanding man after all…" She stated softly, voice honeyed, that almost made Ryou recoil, but he managed to send her a small shaky smile, and a nod.

_Gahh! Don__'t praise me! I don't want your praise! I don't want your anything! What I want is you far, far away from me! _Ryou shouted inside his head.

"Yeah even if he's slightly cold, and a bit weird, Ryou is a good guy, unlike that bastard.." The last part had a hint of venom in it but with that they finally bid each other goodbye.

When they were finally out of hearing range, Ryou released a snort, Motoyasu was an idiot but a really amusing guy. Ryou had thought, a reunion with one of his fellow heroes would degrade into an argument, like what had happen with Naofumi, yet the whole thing had been reasonably pleasant, lifting his mood a little

"Ahh... I'm surrounded by idiots on all sides, it seems…" Ryou commented out loud, earning him a few curious glances from the passing villagers.

Looking up at the sky, Ryou took a deep breath. He was still wary after his encounter with the Dire Wolves, but he couldn't let fear control him, he had to get out of his comfort zone, and go out there again, and again, or he wouldn't be able to survive.

With that in mind he decided to take the western exit this time, that would put him at least a few kilometers from where he had met the wolves.

* * *

The gates had been mostly deserted, something that he found strange, and decided to approach the stationed guard. Apparently according to the guard, the knight had done his job. Most of the other guards, and knights were scouting the eastern side, both hills, and forest in search of the wolves. Word had also gone out that a party of three adventurers had gone missing for two days now, their fate was now common knowledge thanks to Ryou's testimony, most of the other adventurers in town were also out there, hoping to avenge their fellow comrades.

That problem had really been taken from Ryou's hands, between the adventurers, and the knights, the wolves would be hunted down. He could go back to hunt monsters that were actually smaller than him. One day soon he would go against bigger, and far more dangerous things. Today however he would only take on monsters that couldn't tear off his head in a single bite.

A positive note, Ryou discovered, had been a level up, probably thanks to the monsters jumping into the river. He didn't realize it back then, far too busy running for his life.

Another positive point had been the increase in overall agility, that didn't just increased is movement speed. The help menu had explained it, however truly feeling it was a different story. Agility increased everything, he could now take aim, and fire faster, not an amazing difference but definitely noticeable. Even his reaction speed had increased.

The problem with leveling so close to Castle town was that killing Balloons was quickly outgrowing its efficiency, even when adding Usapils, and Mushes to the mix. Perhaps a trip to Lute village was in need, there were stronger monsters around, and not as deadly has the wolves… Well as long has he stayed clear from the mines that was.

Ryou had been ready to call it a day, after finishing another group of mushes. Looking up he saw ugly clouds gathering in the sky, and the wind was picking up, no doubt a storm in forming stages. Ryou didn't want to be caught in a storm while in the forest, not when he had a cozy Inn to take refuge in.

Making his way in the direction he thought Melromarc's Capital was located, he climbed a slope that stretched higher then the trees just to make sure he was in the right direction. His Mini-Map ability was amazing inside Castle Town, especially with the ability to bookmark stuff… Out in the wilderness however, it was completely useless having a very limited zoom out option, it hardly showed any details

_At the very least it could have the bookmarks on the borders of the map__… That would help…_

After getting to the top that ended in an almost straight decline, he saw Castle town in the distance, covered in shadows because of the clouds. Looking at Castle Town Ryou thoughts begun to wonder.

_I really should look into getting a party member__…_ Honestly, now that Naofumi had Raphtalia with him it would be mostly safe to go to Slave Owner. The foremost reason Ryou avoided the place, was Raphtalia, herself… He couldn't trust himself not to grab her on sight…

_With Naofumi being a dick, and with the way he treats her, maybe it would have been kinder__…_ Well what was done was done. There was another reason however… Almost nobody would bat an eye, if he had a slave with him, but Motoyasu was sure to throw an hissy fit if he knew…

_Besides what are the chances that I would even get one, half as good as Raphtalia anyway__…_ Ryou was under no illusion that any slave he got would be as strong, and as loyal has the raccoon girl…

_And I can__'t even begin to imagine myself forcing that loyalty into them… Especially if they are children... Waves or not, there are limits one should not cross..._

A small drop of water hit his nose, startling Ryou, who raised his hand, watching the small drops hitting his glove, however something else on the corner of his vision caught his attention. Looking into the mini-map, eyes narrowing slightly, he saw a big red dot appearing near the border of the map, slowly getting closer to his position.

Turning around, Ryou's body froze almost in middle movement, mouth opening, and eyes widening in shock, he took in the sight before him.

At the base of the incline, slitted blue eyes were locked on his person, and a snarl could be heard over the sound of the rain that was rapidly turning into a storm. The colossal wolf gave one step forward, and Ryou gave one backwards, but caught himself in time, his foot meting the end of the slope. Looking down, it was almost a straight fall, deep enough that if it didn't kill him it would certainly break a lot of bones.

The creature had now advanced a couple of meters, slowly making its way towards him, and Ryou could only look almost frozen solid at almost literal death given a physical form, that was inevitably coming for him.


	10. The Hunt Part Three

**A/N:** As promised here is the chapter, and this one is the final one for this arc.

Once again thanks for the amazing support everyone.

Well, here we go...

* * *

**Chapter 10. Another World: The Hunt Part Three**

_At the base of the incline, slitted blue eyes were locked on his person, and a snarl could be heard over the rain that was rapidly turning into a storm. The colossal wolf gave one step forward, and Ryou backwards but caught himself in time, his foot meting the end of a slope. Looking down, it was a almost straight fall, deep enough that if it didn__'t kill him, it would certainly break a lot of bones._

_The creature had now advanced a couple of meters, slowly making its way towards him, and Ryou could only look almost frozen solid at the almost literal death given physical form, that was inevitably making its way towards him._

The rain continued to fall, and the wind gained strength, yet the tremor that run through Ryou had nothing to do with either.

_There's no way__… It's a few kilometers from the other side, and that's through Castle Town! How the hell did they not only made their way past the scouts, but manage to track me down so quickly?!_

The Great Dire Wolf, was now one fourth into the slope, and as it gave another slow step, Ryou almost stepped back again, until his brain remembered there was no back. If the fall didn't kill him, the wolf would finish the job for sure…

_Can I escape..?_ As if fate heard him, being the bitch it was, behind the Great Wolf from the bushes emerged two other Dire Wolves.

_I'm going to die here..._ Ryou thought body going numb with the realization. Why had he been summoned then? To this fantasy world he enjoyed reading, and later watching, only to die to some mob… Not to the wave, not to Glass, not to the Spirit Turtle… But to a overgrown door mat…

_No! I'm not going to lose my second chance here!_ Despair gave way to another feeling, anger, and Ryou grabbed on to it like a life line… Anger at being summoned...Anger at wasting his past life...Anger at having no choice but to fight…Anger at the other heroes for their naivety, and stupidity…But most of all anger at the monsters in front of him that wanted nothing more but to end his life.. Because after coming to the realization of what had been wasted, and spending years not caring about life, now that he had been given a second chance…

_I want to live! _That thought opened the way to clarity… Gritting his teeth, Ryou planted his foot down in defiance, and raised his bow taking aim at the wolf, now almost halfway in the slope.

"You want a fight?! Well you got one!" Ryou screamed over the rain and wind, his fingers releasing an arrow aimed at the great wolf.

He had aimed for the head, but the wolf shifted his body, and the arrow hit its shoulder. The Great Dire Wolf flinched, giving Ryou enough time for a second shot, the arrow cut through the rain, and missed… The wolf had darted left at the last second, before picking up speed.

_I missed?! No he dodged it__…_ Ryou thought in both anger, and disbelief, before an idea, a very stupid idea based on what he had just witnessed, made its existence known, and Ryou was acting on it before even considering how stupid it was.

Breaking into a run down the slope, bow raised, and arrow pulled Ryou went directly towards the wolf who was now coming towards him at far greater speed.

Releasing the arrow a second later towards the wolf, the monster lunged, jumping towards Ryou, and avoiding the arrow.

Ryou went low, the inclination, and the now wet grass offering little resistance while sliding. In a true cheap movie fashion, not even having time to believe the stunt had actually worked, Ryou slid right beneath the jumping wolf, grey fur passing over his head.

After passing under the wolf, there was movement in front of him, Ryou looked at the new imminent threat, the other two smaller Dire Wolves were coming towards him, one coming straight up the slope, and the other parallel near the edge, trying to cut him from the side.

Eyes aimed at the forehead of the one in front, an arrow cut through both wind, and the drops of water, before finding its resting place in the middle of the creatures head, who had no time to dodge. Shifting his attention towards the other one, Ryou saw it coming from the side, far to quickly, and almost on him, so he did the only thing he could in that instant, planting a hand in the ground, he threw himself off the ledge.

The world blurred for a moment before he hit the ground almost curled up. Ryou rolled twice, before coming to a stop, moving slightly sent a sharp pain through his sides. Teeth clenched, Ryou tried to raise himself into a standing position, however some ungodly force hit him in the back, forcing him into the ground once more, and he felt something scrape him on the top of his head.

Rolling sideways trying to put some distance between himself, and whatever had hit him, He finally regain some visibility, and realized that his action had just save his life, Where his head had been just a moment ago, was a maw full of very sharp teeth.

Snarling from its failed attempt, the wolf turned his head towards Ryou, before lunging again, laying on the ground, vision tinted red, and without anyway to dodge Ryou did the only thing he could to protect himself. Pain erupted from the arm he had used to protect his neck, the target of the bite. With a paw pushing him down, and the blinding pain, Ryou tried to push the wolf away but to no avail, while it was biting away at his arm. Without any other options, the Bow Hero clenched his other hand, and swung his fist. With far more force than he thought he had, he hit the wolf in the muzzle, its head snapping to the side.

It quickly regained its bearings, and came down for a second attack, but Ryou planted his feet on the monster's chest, before sending the creature tumbling backwards.

Not even pausing to question both amazing feats of strength, Ryou pulled an arrow back, ignoring the pain that spread from that action across his arm, even when he felt something coming up to his throat. He released it, and it sunk into the creatures neck, another, and another, after the fourth one the wolf, lay gurgling, and growling, before another arrow made its way into his head stopping any more movement.

Breathing deep, Ryou clutched his wounded arm, blinking away the redness in his right eye, no doubt from a gash somewhere in his head.

_That's two__…But…_

"Grrrrrrr….."The growl sent shivers down his spine. Looking towards the curve that lead into the slope, the Great Dire Wolf had made its way down, and was now standing a couple of meters from Ryou as if observing him.

_I can hardly move my arm anymore, I can only run, and hope that it can__'t track me down with this rain…_ Ryou concluded, eyes locked on the monstrous wolf, before a flash of white blinded him, followed by a thunderous Boom, so loud, and bright that he almost lost his sense of self, blinking away the spots, he hardly had seconds before throwing himself backwards. The tree between him, and the wolf tumbled, covered in flames, missing Ryou by centimeters, enough that he could feel the heat.

Ryou raised himself once again into standing position, another intake of air at the sharp pain in his side, and he looked forward towards the front with a grave frown, at the flames in front of him, only for his eyes to widen a few moments later. From the flames burst a gigantic shadow, snarling in his direction, landing next to him, and lashing with a paw in his direction. Ryou jumped back with difficulty, watching the paw pass millimeters from his face, however the wolf continued with the momentum almost spinning, and Ryou couldn't dodge the second blow that came in the form of a tail whip slamming against his midsection.

All the air in his lungs escaped him, and the world almost stopped, then he was flying through the air, everything blurring, before crashing into the trunk of a tree… He felt something in his back crack, followed by the back of his head hitting the trunk, now turning dizzy with his vision blurring, Ryou still caught the Great wolf turning into his direction, and preparing himself to lunge one final time. Ryou tried to move, to get back on his feet, but agony erupted in his back, and from his mouth in the form of a scream.

Blinking away the tears of pain, Ryou could only look at death in the eye, unable to move anymore. In a last effort of defiance he tried to pull on an arrow, yet his arm refused to move anymore. The wolf lunged, and everything slowed down… Strangely…. instead of feeling fear, Ryou could only keep his grip on the anger he felt, and at the burning sensation that was coming from his bow, his vision slowly fading to black, yet completely tinted red now, although neither things had anything to do with the damage suffered. If Ryou had the ability to see himself at the moment, he would see a peculiar if dreadful sight staring back, his eyes had gained an ominous red shine, an faint red lines spread across his face, and down his body.

Finally even the Great Dire Wolf, who was moving to finish him off disappear from his sight, everything turning black, and all sound ceased. After a moment in that pitch black darkness, Ryou heard a disembodied voice, 'it' appeared to be asking him something but the Bow Hero couldn't make out what it was saying, and over the voice another sound was heard… A scream… An high pitched scream, that sounded, so very far away… Female, and yet he couldn't help but to find it oddly familiar for some reason…

A green, and shining light appeared at the edge of the darkness, and a metal screeching sound echoed in it, followed by a loud clang, eerily reminiscent of when he had been hit by a car.

"Ryou..!" A voice… A very familiar voice shouted, and blinking, the darkness around Ryou was banished. It took him a moment to take everything in, and when he did, Ryou couldn't believe what he was seeing.

"Naofumi..?" Ryou asked voice shaking… The how, and why, remained unanswered in his head. True to both the title, and weapon he wielded, Naofumi tried to stand his ground, with both paws of the wolf pressing down on his shoulders, and his shield shoved inside the creatures mouth, preventing it from biting his head off.

"I can hold it off forever, finish it!" That broke Ryou of any erratic thought, and he could actually see what was going on. When everything truly registered, Ryou tried once more to move his arm, but it wouldn't respond.

Falling on one knee, the Shield Hero could hardly stand against the monumental force against him, arms shaking from exertion, and teeth clenched, saliva falling on his face from the open mouth above his head.

"Ryou!" This time there was an hint of panic mixed in it, and in answer to that, in an act of complete desperation, the mentioned hero brought the bow close to his mouth, and clenched his teeth praying it would work. The end of the arrow materialized between clench teeth, and Ryou released it. The arrow flew, hitting the monster in his eye. That got the creature off Naofumi, scratching at its head to get rid of the intrusion. Ryou released arrow after arrow through clench teeth.

Arrows kept flying, hitting the Wolf anywhere he could think of, that would deal serious damage… Head… Neck… Even between its ribs... All the while Naofumi kept harassing the beast, intent on keeping its attention on himself.

Ryou only thoughts between the pain he was feeling were filled with rage. _Die!Die!Die! Fucking die already!_

Eventually the creature went down, it still tried to raise itself twice, but more arrows pelted it. Even when it stopped moving, Ryou still released two more arrows followed by a short pause, and another one to make sure.

Gasping breaths were the only sound that could be heard, besides the pitter-patter of the rain, and the crackling of the dying embers from the tree.

With only one eye open, Ryou focused his vision, in the corner, bringing up the status menu. His own health bar had only a quarter of his Health points left, and they were very slowly decreasing. Eye trailing upward, he could see a blurry flashing icon besides his name, a square yellow icon, with what appeared to be a red drop.

_Bleeding huh__…_ It was the obvious conclusion…

His focus turned to his arm, between the shredded armor, and the blood he couldn't survey the damage, however if what was leaking down his arm was of any indication, then the Dire Wolf had punctured something important there. That wasn't all, his chest hurt, his back was pure agony, his legs hurt, his head was throbbing like someone had hit it with a baseball bat several times, he could hardly keep his eye opened with the blood flowing down from his head, his vision was blurry, and his arm was burning like a damn furnace..

_I'm a mess__… But I'm alive...Still alive…_ Ryou concluded, opening his inventory, he reached with his good, and still functioning hand into it, feeling the bottle in it. He pulled the potion out, and with his thumb he popped the thing open, dropping the liquid content on his mouth. Ryou retched, the potion had been disgusting, like a really bitter medicine without the chemical taste it usually had, and yet it still managed to taste worse. Forcing it down his throat, he managed to finish the whole thing, the effects making themselves known almost immediately. The pain in his body, arm included had numbed a bit, his headache had all but disappeared, and his vision was returning to normal.

Looking at his health again he realized that his health points had reached more than three quarters, and he apparently was not bleeding to death anymore.

Shifting his eyes from the status window, to his savior… Naofumi was leaning against a tree, his hair hiding his face from view.

_Guess my body wasn__'t the only thing almost shredded to bits during this fight…_ His pride had all but been torn apart… Ryou was saved by the last person he wanted, or expected to come to his rescue, and yet…

_My pride can take the hit, if it means living, I suppose__…_ Ryou thought before making his voice heard, it was almost a murmur yet it reach Naofumi.

"What are you doing here Naofumi?" Ryou asked, with a small slur. The shield hero, didn't even bother to raise his head.

"Saving your ass apparently…" Even though Naofumi was giving him the same old treatment, and he should have expected it, Ryou couldn't help himself.

"Suppose, you expect a thank you then?" His brain almost didn't caught up with the callous question he threw to the person that saved him, yet to his great surprise Naofumi didn't took offense to it, he only let out a small chuckle, that sounded far more tired than his age would indicate, at least in Ryou's ears.

After a few moments with only the sound of rain, Naofumi voice his own thoughts, "The only thing, I expect from people nowadays is a stab in the back…"

_You say that, yet you still came, and put yourself in danger to save me__…_ For the life of him Ryou, couldn't get a clear picture of the Shield Hero…

"…Besides if you want to show your gratitude, then thank Raphtalia, she was the one who heard you…" Ryou, turned his head, and standing a few meters to the right, was the little demi-human who looked more like an apparition then a small cute child, her ears flat against her head, shaking although if it was from the rain or from the entire ordeal, that remained unanswered.

Face softening, Ryou beckon her to come closer, with a hand. Raphtalia, gave one step, and hesitated for a moment before making her way to him, stopping right next to Ryou.

Ryou raised his hand, and the poor thing lowered her head, and her body stiffened. He gently let it rest on top of her head, between the ears, rubbing them, in an effort to comfort both her, and himself, the warm that emanated serving as the final proof that he was still in the realm of the living.

"Guess these ears aren't just there to look fluffy, huh? You really saved me back there Raphtalia, thank you." Ryou murmured, and Raphtalia bless her heart, raised her head with a worried frown on her face, and launched a question that almost melted his heart, her voice soft.

"Ryou-sama... You're not going to die, right?" Hearing that Ryou's eyes widen a little before softening, a small smile blooming.

_Even after every horrible thing that happen to you, you still have such a good heart__…_

"No, not today… Thanks to you." He patted her head twice, and she looked down embarrassed. Ryou released a small chuckle, before looking towards the Shield hero, a small half smile, half grimace forming in his face, before he released a sigh.

"This is awkward since, I kinda punched you a few hours ago, and believe me, I wanted to do far more then that… But I'm not ,'that' ungrateful so… Thanks Naofumi, you really saved my ass back there…" The Shield hero finally raised his head, eyes widening in complete disbelief, before his face, contorted in a series of expressions Ryou couldn't even keep track, finally it stopped on looking mostly passive, before crossing his arms, and he closed his eyes.

"You weren't there…" He started "…but the trash king told us, that if a hero dies, the waves will get much harder… That's the reason he gave at least, for not putting my neck under a guillotine. I haven't even seen a wave, But I know, I don't want them any harder then they have to be… That's the reason why I saved you, don't misunderstand…" He finished a satisfied smug grin in his face, and he even nodded three times at his own logic.

That brought something out of Ryou, something other than anger.

" Pfff… Pffffff… Ahahahahahahahahahahaha…. Ouch… My sides… Goddammit Naofumi, don't just suddenly turn into a tsundere, and make me laugh like that, I'm still in a lot of pain you know..." Ryou laughed, clutching his side, although he noticed Raphtalia looking worried, and slightly raising her hands, has if wanting to help but unsure how to do so.

"Call me tsundere again, and you will be in a lot more pain…" Naofumi hissed through clenched teeth.

That only served to make Ryou laugh harder, followed by hisses of pain…

_I guess, I was wrong about him, even if he is still a massive pain in the ass__…_

* * *

Interesting thing about health potions, even if they healed most of the damage, they couldn't heal stamina, and exhaustion, so Ryou still needed help making his way to the Inn, an experience neither heroes would want to repeat, or mention ever again. Thankfully with the rain, the streets were mostly empty.

Before leaving the forest, Ryou had asked Naofumi to collect the loot from the wolves, and after a little prodding the shield hero had agreed to take half of the total spoils.

All in all Ryou had unlocked a total of six new bows, from the two different types of wolves.

**[Wolf Meat Bow - Equipment Bonus - +1 to Dismantling Technique]**

**[Great Wolf Meat Bow - Equipment Bonus - +2 Dismantling Technique]**

From the meat, he unlocked the Wolf Meat Bow, and the Great Wolf Meat Bow, both bows giving him access to the dismantling techniques. Those abilities would allow him to dismantle monsters with chances of getting more loot.

The bows unlocked by the pelts had been a surprise…

**[Dire Furry Bow - Equipment Bonus - + 6 Agility]**

**[Great Furry Bow - Equipment Bonus - + 10 Agility, Fire Resistance Bonus (Small) ]**

The Dire Furry Bow, and Great Furry Bow, excellent naming sense aside, offered plus six, and plus ten in agility. The both of them, when mastered would provide more agility then what he would gain from a level. However those numbers made Ryou consider if the Great Dire Wolf, was something among the lines of a mini-boss, or a Elite monster. At least the fire resistance made sense… Animals were naturally afraid of fire, yet the monster had jumped through the fire just to eat him. However when he absorbed the final materials, he concluded that indeed the Great Dire Wolf was not a normal mob at all.

The fangs unlocked the real surprise… Looking at them, left a bittersweet feeling in Ryou, and he couldn't help but to think that at that point the world was just bullying him, or at least his legendary weapon was trolling him very, very hard.

**[Wolf Fang Bow - Equipment Bonus - + +6 Attack, Attack Speed Bonus (Small) ]**

**[Great Fang Bow - Equipment Bonus - + 12 Attack, Rapid Shot - Special Effect - Attack Speed Bonus (Medium) ]**

The Wolf Fanged Bow was his first pure offensive bow, giving him a plus six to his attack, and a small bonus to attack speed. A very nice upgrade, but the other… The Great Fanged Bow, not only gave him plus twelve to attack, and an even bigger bonus to attack speed on use, but also gave him a skill called Rapid Shot… All this time looking for an offensive skill, even trying his hand in magic, and the first truly offensive ability had been unlocked, after he had defeated a monster where that specific skill would have worked wonders.

He didn't found out what shields Naofumi had unlocked, but from his pleased expression it had been worth it.

The both of them had hardly traded any more words after leaving the forest, the awkwardness of the situation still around them, but there had been another feeling… A small sense of comradeship between them, in those empty, dark, and wet streets with Raphtalia trailing slightly behind.

After dropping him off in front of his room, Naofumi still true to himself, threw another parting shot, something among the lines of "Don't get in over your head again, or I might not be there to save you next time…" and Ryou let the Shield Hero have that one, far to tired to even try to argue.

Stumbling towards his bed, Ryou was dead to the world the moment his head touched the pillow.

* * *

Light came into the room from the window, and Ryou scrunched his face, bringing an arm to protect himself from the intruder. That simple action brought a groan out of him.

_Did I get hit by another car..?_ He wondered, his whole body felt heavy, and stiff. Opening his eyes, and blinking away the sleep, he noticed he was in his room, and that he was still wearing armor.

The events from the previous day coming to him, and he couldn't help but to lay there looking at the ceiling in wonder.

_I'm actually alive__… _

He had decided to fight… In that moment he had decided to fight, and live. Now he was alive, because he had fought against fate, and to a miraculous intervention from both Naofumi, and Raphtalia.

It had been a miracle he had come out alive, but this time instead of pondering on his mistakes, and what-ifs he just felt relief… Happy to be alive, and empowered if tired.

Slowly raising himself he took in his condition, his armor had to much red, and brown staining it, and the bed looked even worse.

_Oops__… I might have to pay for that…_ The bed sheets were most likely beyond saving at this point. Looking towards his arm, he took out his now shredded arm armor, and, besides being coated in a dark brown, and sensible to touch, there was no other evidence that it was used as a chewing toy the night before, he could even move it, albeit it felt a little numb.

_I also need to give my thanks to Erhard for this__…_ Ryou didn't knew what kind of force a wolf could apply in a bite, but for sure they had enough to break bones, and the one he had faced had been far bigger than normal, so the fact that he still had an arm was nothing short of another miracle, that - and having a very good armor on him.

_This thing was worth every piece of silver, I payed for it__…_

After taking his armor off, Ryou went for a bath scrubbing all the blood, and dirt off him, the bath also did wonders for his very sore body.

While in the bath ,Ryou decided that he would take one day off from monster grinding, to fully recover, since he wouldn't make any progress, he still had a little trouble moving around, and his armor was damaged. He had to pay Erhard a visit however, both to show is appreciation, and to repair his armor.

The rest of the day passed with Ryou mostly resting, with a small, and slow trip to the blacksmith. He told Erhard of his fight, and how Naofumi had actually saved him, after the blacksmith had asked how the armor suffered so much damage in so little time.

Apparently even with the rain, and being dark, someone had seen them because rumors were already flying around, on how the merciless Shield Hero had ambushed Ryou, and proceed to violently beat him up, in revenge, before dropping him in his room.

Ryou didn't know if he should laugh at that, or slam his face on the counter, so he just went with what was normal for him, and released a sigh of exasperation at how stupid people could be… There really was no winning against these people...

Erhard at least had promised to diffuse such rumors where he could, mostly in his circle of merchants, and clients. It wouldn't amount to much in the great scheme of things, but it would be a start.

* * *

The following day, Ryou awoke as a man reborn, one hundred times better than the day before, although the credit for that could be attributed both to health potions, and his status as hero, most likely boosting his healing, and recovering ability to far higher levels then normal humans.

After picking his armor from Erhard, and promising the man that he would be more careful, Ryou set out to hit the forest once again.

Passing through the gate, he had stopped to inform the guards that the wolf problem had been solved, and apparently thanks to that he had a reward to collect at the adventurers guild. The guild itself had posted a bounty on the wolves. One thousand silver, the same he had received from Aultcray at the beginning of his journey.

After half an hour of trekking, he finally found something worth hunting, a pack of six balloon's.

With a mental command Ryou willed… _Change bow: Great Fanged Bow..!_

His bow changed, from its normal form, into a dirty white color, both of the limbs changed from smooth, to irregular indentations, similar to the teeth of the wolves, and the weapon was larger then his other bows, maybe by twenty percent…

Ryou lips formed a grin at the sight, his first true offensive weapon, one that would probably become his, to go weapon, for a while.

_Okay, so how does this work..? Do I just shout the name of the skill..?_ Ryou question mentally, he had read the skill effect, and obviously wanted to try it.

Taking aim, and pulling an arrow Ryou shouted, gaining the Balloon's attention.

"Rapid Shot!" An arrow fired, followed by two others in the next instant, even if Ryou had only fired one.

Thrak…

Thrak…

Thrak…

Three balloon's met their end right there, and then, the grin in Ryou's face might had spread into a slightly maniacal smile.

Taking aim again he repeated the action, and the rest of the balloon's popped out of existence, far to slow to take advantage of the weakness in his Divine Protection...

That had been something, Ryou had figured out in his fight with the Great Dire Wolf… His Divine Protection had a weakness… It would always insure he hit the target, but the ability couldn't predict actions taken after the bow was fired. That had never been a problem before, no monster had tried to avoid his arrows, so they had never changed direction after he shot. The wolves however were smarter, and could actually avoid his arrows with enough time, although it had also been thanks to that capability, that Ryou had been able to trick, and execute his movie like escape, from the Great Dire Wolf.

But now… Now he had a new ability. The skill repeated his last shot twice, right after releasing an arrow, and targeted anything he wanted to hit in his field of vision.

With that in mind, the next course of action should have been obvious had anyone been present…

Taking aim at a big tree, Ryou couldn't really resist, not that he tried anyway…

"Muhahahahahaha!" With maniacal laughter Ryou begun unleashing his skill with a mental command over, and over again on the poor tree, emulating the Medieval equivalent of a machine gun.

"This is awesome!" Ryou almost gushed, filled with excitement. There was almost no down time between the shots, and the skill had no cool down so he could keep on firing until his SP reached zero. The skill only used a measly five points, so he could more or less spam the skill all around, at least while firing normal arrows.

_Okay! Okay__… It's an awesome skill, but don't forget you are still as fragile today as you were two days ago, Ryou… _He pointed out to himself, bringing down his excitement to manageable levels.

However this new skill, greatly increased his offensive power. The situation he had been before had been eye opening, however in hindsight if he had the Rapid Shot during the fight, he could have ended the fight before they got within sniffing distance… Probably...

Ryou had also tried to imagine how the other heroes would have fared, if they had been in his situation, alone. He had come to the conclusion that either Motoyasu, or Ren would have dealt with it much better than he had, they were the perfect balance between offensive, and defensive power. Naofumi at this point would have been in as bad of a situation as Ryou had been or even worse. His only weapon as per his own words, Raphtalia, had yet to grow enough to be able to take on such foes, in a few weeks it would be a completely different story though.

Ryou game plan had not changed, however it was in need of a revision. Focusing on speed for defense was all well, and good, but it only worked if he could out speed his opponent, and if he had enough space to actually maneuver. These two had failed them last time, he had been only slightly faster than the wolves, and the slope had greatly reduced his maneuverability. When he actually had space to maneuver, he could hardly move anymore.

The rapid shot was definitely a good start, but something like Naofumi's Air Shield Strike, was now what he needed, something dynamic that could be used in different ways, from offense to defense, and even to maneuver.

Maybe he should follow the Shield Hero steps, and go to Lute village, he might be able to find something useful there.

With that final thought, Ryou decided to continue his grind, with his new ability he would probably make great strides.

* * *

After calling it a day, Ryou had the errand thought that he really needed to start practicing his camping skills, it would be much more efficient that way. But for today he actually had a good reason to return to town.

Visiting the adventures guild, the place that existed in every mainstream manga with a fantasy setting. True to that notion, it was everything he had expected, and more. From groups of what he could only guess were adventurers, clad in all forms of defensive, and magical gear, it even had a counter with the most attractive woman this side of of Melromarc had to offer.

_Is that a Quest Posting Board..?_ Ryou thought wondering how much more cliche you could get, deciding to take a look at it, yet he couldn't stop the weird twitch his face was making.

_Well, these look like quests, but I can't read any of them..._Ryou though dejectedly, hopefully some time later he would be able to actually read them, or have a party member who could.

Going for the counter, Ryou addressed the woman intent on collecting his bounty, and if anyone ever asked, no, he absolutely did not let his eyes wander a little below the neck line. After producing the few spoils from the wolves he still had, he silently thanked whoever was hearing at the time, for not selling them beforehand, they served as proof here.

When the woman went towards the back to collect his reward, Ryou decided he should probably keep the spoils instead of selling them, maybe down the line they could come in use. Erhard could probably make some armor, or at least upgrade his current one. During his musings a conversation picked his interest, and he turned his attention towards the table where it was happening.

"If it keeps going like this our village is finished…" One man stated depressingly, and from his clothes he looked like your regular civilian.

"Even if we post our request, who knows how long it will take before anyone will take it…" The other, slightly older man stated, looking in contemplation towards his glass that was filled with a maroon liquid, most likely wine.

_Some village is in trouble hmm? Now if, I was Itsuki, I would be all over it, unfortunately for you guys I__'m not, so get someone else…I have enough problems has it is…_ Ryou thought, and he would later in hindsight, curse himself for jinxing it right there, and then.

"Yuusha-sama, here is your reward." The lady on the counter offered, holding a pouch filled with lots of coins. Taking the pouch, Ryou opened it, and verifying that those were indeed silver coins he closed it again. There probably was no point in counting it.

_Who would be stupid enough to steal from one of the Four Heroes anyway? Well besides Naofumi, but even stealing from him would be pretty stupid... The guy carries monsters with him everywhere__… Speaking of Naofumi, I should probably share this with him, its only fair after all…_ Throwing the bag up, he caught it by the drawstring, sending a thankful smile towards the woman.

"Thank you, I'll take my leave now." Turning around Ryou gave exactly three steps before someone touched his shoulder.

"Excuse me, are you one of the Heroes of Legend?" Ryou almost groaned. The two men that had been talking about their village problems were now looking at him with slightly hopeful looks on their faces.

"Yes..?" Ryou half stated, half asked, already having a pretty good idea where this was going.

True too his prediction, both man bowed, before begging, "Please Yuusha-sama, listen to our request!" And this time Ryou did groaned out loud.

_What__'s with this side quest situation..._


	11. Northern Territories

**A/N - **Finally we enter a new arc, and the story starts to pick up.

A special thank you to everyone for you kind words, encouragement, critics, and for overall just being awesome.

Without anything else to say here it is... Ryou finally leaves the safety bubble that's Castle Town, the plot thickens, and more questions arise...

* * *

**Chapter 11. Wave of Calamity: Northern Territories**

Another small bump. His rear was already quite sore from the trip. The carriage obviously didn't possess the best of hydraulic systems, so he could feel every rock, and hole that they come across on the road, especially since the road was nothing more then a track of dirt.

For what was probably the tenth time since the beginning of this trip, Ryou wondered why he had accepted this particular request with little more then three weeks to the wave yet he couldn't come up with just one single explanation. It could have been the reward even if he wasn't particularly hurting for money. It could have been the opportunity to hunt new monsters, and unlock new bows. It could have been just his adventurer spirit wanting to see more of this new world. It could even have been his own bleeding heart, though he put far less weight on that particular option.

Throwing an annoyed glance at the villager beside him, he asked in slight exasperation,"Remind me again Old man, why exactly do you need my help?"

The old man in question, the one that hired him, looked nervously in his direction before explaining.

"Yuusha-sama our village is being sieged by misfortune…" the old man explained sadly.

With a sigh Ryou had to ask, "You already mention that, but what exactly is this 'misfortune' you speak off?"

The old man clapped his hands before looking towards the floor of the carriage. "It can only be the work of an evil spirit… Diseased crops, cattle appearing mutilated or just disappearing altogether, fences and barns broken or just completely destroyed, burglary is everywhere! Even rumors have spread around, and because of that merchants avoid the town like the plague, and those that don't just disappear altogether after leaving, never to be seen again. It's the work of an evil spirit, I tell you!" At the end of the explanation the old man was almost bellowing with tears in his eyes.

Ryou released another breath in annoyance, but patted the old man on the shoulder as he cried.

The old Ryou, would have instantly called bullshit, and that there had to be a logical explanation for everything. On the off chance of it truly being the work of an evil spirit, instead of a hero they should have called the pope himself, maybe that shitty fanatic would actually do something worthwhile with his life.

The current Ryou, was still inclined to call it bullshit, however he couldn't discount the possibility, that it was actually the work of a paranormal force. The old him would have called magic bullshit too, and now he was more or less using it, his weapon powers were based on the concept.

If it truly was the work of an evil spirit like the man had declared, Ryou had no idea how to deal with it at all. Wolves were one thing, they had been alive to begin with, so they could be killed. A paranormal entity though?

_I don__'t know if my arrows can actually damage such a thing, and I'm not really in a hurry to find out…_ Ryou pondered, it wasn't that he was afraid of the paranormal, no… His fears were a lot more down to earth, and much more boring than that.

_Whatever the case there are far too many unfortunate events to be a coincidence, that's for sure__…_

"What about the neighboring villages?" Ryou asked, crossing his leg, even when another bump made him shift a little.

Rubbing his eyes the old man answered, "The farms around the village are suffering the same fate, but I haven't heard anything from the other villages…"

_So it's only happening in this particular village__… _

It was a localized event then, and taking into account the increase in crime, there existed the possibility that a bandit group had made the village their headquarters. It would explain almost everything, except maybe the diseased crops, although that could be attributed too magic. They could be using intimidation tactics like the mob.

"Old man, do you know if some of the criminals are extorting money from the villagers…Like, offering protection from the events if you pay a toll, or something along those lines?" Ryou asked. If that had been the case he could lay the whole "evil spirit" theory to rest, although that kind of thing only happened in movies.

"Huh, no, from what I know they only steal from people, or kill them if they resist... If we knew who they were, we would have stopped them ourselves…" The old man explained with an angry frown.

_Well there goes that theory__…_

So it could still be the work of the paranormal, but Ryou decided to leave that one on the bottom of the list, there wasn't much more he could get just from thinking about it. It would be better to wait until he arrived, and gathered more information.

* * *

One thing that Ryou couldn't help but to notice was that Melromarc had a very low population density. It made sense since it was mostly a Middle Age Kingdom, yet now that he actually went beyond the outskirts of Castle Town it became much clearer. In one entire week they had passed through the astonishing amount of two villages, and Ryou had been able to spot another one in the distance a few days ago. Besides that most of landscape was either great forests, or open fields so one couldn't help but to compare the Melromarc, with a European country, even the climate was for the most part a Mediterranean one.

The journey had taken a full week, only stopping to sleep and, taking some breaks or for the random monster on the road, that Ryou had easily dispatched, along with those that weren't even on the road. With his divine protection he could snipe even monsters that were far away. Since the carriage wasn't that fast to begin with, Ryou could actually jump off, gather what he needed, and return before it got to far.

All-in-all he had encountered an assortment of monsters from porcupines, poison frogs and even a couple of wolves, normal sized ones.

The porcupines, gave him access to the Spiked Bow, that besides increasing his defense by plus four, it also hurt anything that touched the outside of the bow. The poison frogs, had given him access to the Poison Frog Bow, that besides four points in agility, and a small resistance against poison, gave him a new offensive skill, the Poison Shot and as the name implied, in the description it stated what one would expect. It would fire an arrow, and if it hit, the enemy would be poisoned suffering from damage over time. In reality however, he had hit a wolf with it, and the canine fell on his side, instantaneously convulsing and frothing from its mouth. At that moment Ryou decided that he would only use that particular skill against monsters or in life threatening situations.

The rest of what the weapons he had unlocked were mostly stats boosting bows, while nice they didn't offer anything particularly new.

He had also tried his luck shooting down a _wyvern_, or at least that was what Ryou classified it has, unfortunately the flying lizards were far to quick, and smart to be taken down by arrows from such distances, and the poison arrow had no effect on them, on the rare occasion he actually got a hit.

_One day you flying purses, I__'ll make a new bow out of you…_Ryou vowed back then, he had the feeling that _wyverns_ would actually unlock something nice, unfortunately he would have to wait until he had the means to actually take one down.

After finally arriving, Ryou took in the sights. Fortified by a wooden wall, the village was a far cry when compared to Castle town, it probably had around a hundred houses, and that was counting the farms on the outskirts.

Deciding that was better to go around, and start gathering information, Ryou did just that, after asking the old man for the Inn's location. He doubted that he could solve the situation in half a day.

* * *

A few hours later, Ryou was having dinner while his thoughts went to the information he had gathered.

Walking around the village, and the outskirts asking questions had confirmed what the old farmer had said. Burned or diseased crops, missing, and mutilated livestock, even destroyed property. There was also a scarcity of products, and equipment apparently far less merchants came to the land since the first wave had hit...That particular fact made no sense to him, since has far has his geographic knowledge went, the first wave had hit the other side of the country.

On a side note he found out, that technically speaking he wasn't in Melromarc anymore. The Northern Territories, were actually a different country, while still falling under Melromarc's jurisdiction. A Vassal country, or colony of sorts. Not only that, but apparently, he was closer to another superpower of this world then he realized, one villager explained to him, that beyond the mountain range in the very far distance was Faubley, the mountain serving as a natural boarder between the two countries.

Taking another bite of his bread, still warm from the oven, Ryou shifted his thoughts towards the current problem. He had at least confirmed his initial theory. There had been far too many events to be a coincidence, someone or something was targeting this village.

_But for what purpose..?_

Maybe it had been someone with power that wished for revenge, hoping to bring the village down, or maybe someone had been benefiting from the damage. Another conversation with the old farmer was needed, maybe he had forgotten something. Right now Ryou only had a lot of unfortunate events, and nothing pointing towards a source.

* * *

The following day Ryou had to curse himself, for not asking for the old man's address. Thankfully the village was quite small, but he had still wasted most of the morning searching.

Reaching the farm, Ryou couldn't help but to draw parallels between this one, and the farms around his grandmother's village. If he ignored the style of the building, the rest of the farm was a carbon copy of the ones in his old world.

Walking around he finally saw the figure of a man, digging into the soil in the fields, with a straw hat on his head.

"Hey, Old man..." Ryou raised a hand in greeting.

The old man wiped the sweat from his forehead, before dropping the hoe, and turning towards Ryou.

"Ahh, Yuusha-sama, have you dealt with the Evil Spirit already?" The man asked with a little bit of glee. Ryou for his part only sigh before scratching his neck.

"Yeahhh, I don't buy into that Evil Spirit theory of yours, I think something else is going on, but I still haven't figured it out… Can you remember anything else out of the ordinary, besides these unfortunate events? Anything at all even if its just a small thing..," Ryou old man, seemed to be thinking about it, scrunching his eyes before shaking his head.

"No, I apologize Yuusha-sama, but besides all these despicable events, our village has always been peaceful... If someone broke an arm, everyone would know within the hour…"

_Another dead end hmm...Where am I supposed to look, then..?_ Ryou thought before remembering a forgotten fact.

"Hey old man, who's the leader of your village?"

"Leader..?" Shaking his head Ryou expanded on it.

"Yeah, isn't this village, or region ruled by a Lord?" And that finally seemed to click on the old farmer's head.

"Ahh, that would be Lord Almond... He is the lord in charge of this village." The bow hero inclined his head slightly before shifting his weight onto the other leg.

"This Lord Almond, what has he done in response to this crisis?" The old man looked a little crestfallen after hearing the question.

"Lord Almond is a man of hard work you see, he believes we should solve our problems ourselves, but he always had the best interests of the village in mind, or so we thought…" The old man trailed off, and Ryou was on it like a hound on a trail.

"What does that mean? As he given you a reason to believe otherwise?" Looking to the side, the old farmer scratched his mostly bald head.

"Well these are only rumors, people talk a lot around here… But apparently when our misfortune began, the lord of the neighboring village came here to offer help... Nobody knows exactly what went on in that meeting, there's only speculation, but the results speak for themselves... Lord Almond denied any help, it makes sense given the type of man he is, but still…" The old man looked even more defeated.

_If the situation is this bad, what reason could this Lord Almond have to refuse a helping hand..? Is he just too stubborn, and prideful or is there something else... _

"I doubt the help would have been for free, do you have any idea on what the other lord could have asked in return?" Ryou questioned. Nobles were for the most part greedy, it was stereotyping on his part, but it didn't make it any less true…

"Well no but…" the old man trailed off, before copping his hand in front of his mouth, and Ryou raised an eyebrow."...This isn't particularly secret information but...The neighboring lord as shown a passing interest in courting Lord Almonds daughter... Perhaps that's what he asked for, and why Lord Almond refused, but like I said this is mostly speculation from an old man." The lines were finally starting to resemble a painting, with that information… Yet at the same time Ryou couldn't help but to think.

_I'm pretty sure all of that counted as important information old man__… Very important if I'm painting the right picture here..._

If Ryou's hypothesis was correct, then everything connected, however it was just a theory, and he needed proof.

"Hey Old man, do you fancy a trip to the neighboring village?" Ryou questioned with a small grin, and the old man just released a confused, "Huh?"

* * *

Reaching the gates of the Neighboring Village, that went by the name of Gentlewood, Ryou, and the farmer were stopped by the guard at the gate. The man looked more like a thug then a guard, wearing simple leather armor with an axe on his back, and having a scruff appearance.

"Halt! All visitors must pay the toll!" The guard exclaimed, before moving near the carriage, and extending his hand.

With a sigh Ryou asked, "How much?" The guard responded non paused.

"Thirty silver." The amount stopped Ryou in his tracks, turning towards the farmer he had to ask.

"Hey old man, what's the average price on a toll to enter a village in Melromarc?" The old man turned to look at Ryou before responding.

"Between five cooper and one silver coin, one silver coin being the average price imposed by his Majesty, however even that amount varies depending on the village…" Ryou hummed before turning to face the guard again.

"Your toll is thirty times the price imposed by the crown, a little high don't you think?" The guard just frowned before replying.

"It is what it is, so either pay or turn around boy." Ryou released his bow after a moment, before inquiring with smile on his face.

"I'm sure we can bargain…" The guard took a step back at the sight of his bow.

"You! You are one of the Legendary Heroes… It matters not! You could be his Highness, and you still had to pay, those are my orders, so like I said before, either pay or turn around Hero Boy…" The guard stated like the fact he was in the presence of a Legendary Hero meant nothing. Ryou finally relented silently giving some credit to the man. There was no way around it, he had to get into the village. Opening his inventory window he withdraw the money, before dropping it in the guards hand.

"Here you go…" Ryou replied while the guard counted the money, before narrowing his eyes, and looking back at the Bow Hero.

"There's forty silver here…" Ryou only smiled pleasantly.

"That's ten more, in exchange for your discretion, after-all the Yumi-no Yuusha, is in Castle Town, as far as everyone is aware you see .." The guard, that Ryou was almost one hundred percent sure was anything but, just grinned a yellow smile.

"You know how things work around here, Hero boy... Well as far has anyone asks, the last I heard of the four Legendary heroes, they were all in Castle Town…" The Guard agreed, and that was that.

_If the picture I'm painting is true, I would rather not have this village Lord aware of my presence here yet__… Though I hate to take a card out of Itsuki's book, with the whole hidden vigilante thing…_

* * *

The first impressions of Gentlewood was that it definitely eclipsed the Northern village as far as size went, and that someone had a very ironic naming sense, or at least that was what Ryou had thought when exploring the village. The people looked like corpses, not even living, but just surviving. Unlike Castle town, where everyone was lively, Gentlewood felt like death was hovering over the village, yet none of the misfortune from the Northern village had reach here, and Ryou couldn't help but to question the reason for it.

_The look in these people__'s eyes are almost identical to Raphtalia…_

After almost an hour exploration Ryou found a good target, exactly what he had been looking for, a very dubious looking merchant near an Alley. With what had been a little prodding in the form of some silver, the merchant's tongue had gone quite loose, and what a well of information the men had been.

The lord of Gentlewood was, to put it in simple terms a scumbag that fancy himself as the _kingpin_ of the region. The man, had filled his pockets with money from the toll, and accepted all kinds of bribes. Not only that but he had also _'cautioned'_ any merchant to not take their business to the Northern Village, and by _'cautioned'_, the merchant had explained that if they were to do business there, he would not be hold responsible for any _misfortune_ that could happen. The final nail in his coffin, had been the fact that he had his own personal group of attack dogs, that the merchant had been sure were just normal bandits. The very few who were courageous, or stupid enough to open their mouth despise everything would be silenced almost immediately.

_And we have our culprit__… Not the work of an Evil Spirit, but the greed of an Evil Asshole…_

Now the big question on Ryou's mind, was how to go about it. The easiest way would be to return to Castle town, and talk to Aultcray even if he hated the idea. However, Ryou was sure he could come back with an army behind him or at least a few squads of knights. Hero's privileges, and all that.

The thought of confronting the Lord alone crossed his mind, but he preferred when the odds were completely in his favor. The man had bodyguards with him so things could turn slightly ugly. Not only that, but the only thing he had on the Noble, was the fact that the man was corrupt, hardly something that would make anyone lose their sleep, most nobles had dirt on them after all.

Truly the best way would be to return to Lord Almond's Village, and spend the night there, especially since the Inn's in Gentlewood's Village cost a small fortune. He would then start his trip back to Castle Town the following day, after registering the Northern Village as a teleportation location. Ryou's teleportation Ability while usefully came with sever limitations, not only did it had a forty-eight hours cooldown, but he could only register three places at any given time .

_Its like those teleportation skills MMORPG__'s have at the beginning, a free teleport but with sever limitations, and a pretty big cooldown… _Ryou theorized, it had been a common mechanic across a lot of games, however normally as one leveled up he would unlock better, and more complex transportation systems, so maybe the same applied in this world…

With those thoughts, Ryou went on his way back, he had everything he needed from this village anyway.

* * *

The following morning Ryou was. for the second time since arriving in Melromarc, forcefully awaken from his slumber by shouting, and loud knocks on his door.

"Yuusha-sama, Yuusha-sama, come quickly, it's terrible!" The voice that he recognized as the old man that had hired him shouted in panic. Ryou quickly made his way towards the door, before opening it.

"What's wrong?" The old man had sweat running down his head, and was slightly wheezing.

"Its...Its Lord Almond's daughter! She has been kidnapped!" The old man exclaimed, still with his hands on his knees.

"What?!" Ryou exclaimed, eyes narrowing in anger. There had been no doubt in his mind who was behind the event, all evidenced that he had collected the day prior, pointed towards the scummy lord, from Gentlewood's Village.

"It's terrible, Lord Almond tried to stop those monsters from taking his daughter, but they overpowered him, and now even our Lord as been hurt." That was enough to spring Ryou into action. Going back inside, he put on his armor before ordering.

"Take me to him!"

_Is this pure coincidence, or there's something more going on here__..? _Ryou questioned making his way out of the Inn.

* * *

Unlike what Ryou had expected, Lord Almond didn't live in a mansion or a palace like most nobles. His family house was a farm, a big farm, and at the sight Ryou's respect for the man went up a notch. He was someone who understood hard work alright if the house was off any indication.

Entering what looked like a living room, completely made of wood, with a fireplace, and a average dining table, Ryou made his way to a couch where a man, who he was sure was Lord Almond lay.

The man was had brown hair, with yellow greenish eyes, on his abdomen was a rag, that had in times been white, however now it was mostly stained in red. The man was gritting his teeth, but took in the new arrival.

"Who are you?" The man asked voice strained from the pain, and Ryou opened his inventory taking out an health potion.

"Never mind that now, here drink this, it should help a little at least…" Ryou offered, extending the potion into Almond's reach. The man, took one suspicious look at the bottle, before looking at the old man who nodded. Reaching he grabbed it, and drank it in one gulp, grimacing only a little at the horrible flavor. Almost immediately the wound closed, and it became apparent it hadn't hit anything vital.

The man look shocked for a moment before his face became dead serious.

"Thank you" Ryou nodded slightly before stating.

"I heard your daughter was kidnapped…" The man inclined his head clenching his teeth, before exclaiming.

"Yes, she was… I tried to stop them, but they were too many..." Almond trailed off, then he turned his eyes towards the old farmer.

"Round up everyone in the village, were going to look for my daughter, organize in search parties I want no rock left unchecked in the forest!" He ordered, and the old man contrary to what his age might indicate, vanished out of the room in a blink of an eye.

Almond proceed to move towards the table his fist slamming on it a moment later." Dammit! If only I hadn't gone so many times against Aultcray, I would still have his ear, and could ask for reinforcements to help search!" The Noble almost roared.

"Maybe I can help with that..." Ryou offered, and Almond turned to look at him.

"You?! I'm thankful for your assistance, but unless you can convince his Majesty to lend us his knights, I don't see how you can help..." Ryou held a sigh. At the rate he had been sighing now a days, he would have grey hairs before long.

"Right... I haven't introduced myself, I'm Ryou Takuma, and I am the Yumi no Yuusha." Ryou stated with a slight grimace, stating his official title still left a bad taste in his mouth. Almond's eyes widened considerably after hearing the introduction.

"One of the Four Legendary Heroes? What is one such as you doing here?" The Noble questioned.

"I was hired to deal with your _'misfortune'_, and this also seems to fit the bill…" Ryou responded with a shrug.

"Who hired you, because I sure didn't…"

"That farmer did… Why?" Confusion clear on his face, and voice. The village was in a bad state, what was so surprising about hiring a hero?

"You heroes must be running charity these days… Never mind that, Yuusha-sama, I beg you, please help me find my daughter! If its you then Aultcray will surely hear you." The man implored, and it was fantastic the way most people would sing a different tune the moment they knew who he was.

"I was already going to speak with him. I'm pretty sure the one who ordered the kidnapping of your daughter is the same person behind all the misfortune that as fallen on your village." After that statement Almond's eyes almost burst in flames, a snarl formed on his face.

"Who?!" Finally, Ryou revealed his suspicions.

"The Lord of Gentlewood's village." Almond's face took on a look of surprise before it turned red.

"That Slime!" He spat before continuing, "I should have known! He already asked for Rishia once before, and now he even went as far as to kidnapped her?! If he so much as touches a hair on her head, I'll slaughter him." Almond's threatened fists white with rage.

However Ryou came to a very, very sudden stop, freezing completely while his brain processed that statement.

"Wait, wait, wait! Run that by me again? What's your daughter's name?" Almond calmed himself before replying.

"Rishia, Rishia Ivyred… Why?" Ryou covered his eyes with his palms.

"Are you fucking kidding me?!" He screamed at the ceiling, and to the sky's above in frustration.

Rishia had been the clumsy, green haired, shy girl on Itsuki's party. Some stuff that Ryou couldn't remember happened, and she had been kicked out because of it, she then went on to join Naofumi's party.

_Why?! What are the fucking odds that I, happen to come across the same situation as Itsuki without even trying!_

Ryou screamed again in frustration, because now his hand had been forced! He couldn't leave the poor girl by herself. He had access to the teleportation ability, however being the dumb ass that he was, he had forgotten to register Castle Town, the most important place, as a teleportation location. So now instead of two to three days counting the cooldown on his teleport, it would take at least seven to come back with reinforcements. That wasn't a problem before, the village would endure until he came back, even if it was after the wave... But with this? Who knew what such a scumbag would do to Rishia in that amount off time.

_If he__'s been interested in her for so long, then I know what he might do, and he deserves a new hole in his head for it…_

"Shit…" Ryou muttered finally calming down. He would be forced to take action, no doubt about it.

"What's wrong Ryou-sama, do you know my daughter?" Rishia's father asked, and Ryou remembered he wasn't the only one in the room.

"No, that's not it, I just remembered, it will take me almost seven, maybe eight days to return with reinforcements, and we can't wait that long… Who knows what he will do to your daughter in the meantime..." And if possible the man became even angrier then before, although now there was a small touch of desperation in his voice.

"Can't you use your authority as a hero to bring him down?!" Ryou had to stop himself from cursing in frustration.

"I probably could if I had something more to pin on him... But right now the only thing that, I have is that he is a corrupt bastard, he might not even bat an eye at that, a lot of nobles are... If I went to Aultcray with that the King would certainly move, if nothing else just to appease me but it will take too long…" Ryou ended, cursing his own luck, he would try to bluff his way, but it would probably come down to a fight. He couldn't leave a kind-hearted girl like Rishia to her fate. Ryou didn't knew Rishia personally, that much was obvious, but he had known of her. There was something there, he wouldn't use the word 'bond', because she had been nothing more then an image on a screen. In this world though, she was a living, and breathing human being, his feelings towards the girl were more or less the same as with Raphtalia.

"That god damned swine! The only reason he has this much power is because of the accursed wave! Bastard using that fear to keep people under his heel!" Almond lamented.

"Right… This all started after the first wave hit, but that happened on the other side of the country so what's the connection here?" Ryou questioned, because that had made no sense to him.

"It wasn't really the wave itself, but the idea or concept of it. People... Civilians, and low-lives are terrorized by the idea of the wave, and after the first one hit, it became a very real fear. Being a noble gave that slime the upper hand, and he convinced people that if the calamity came, he could save them by calling on the heroes. Some didn't believe him, but the fear was too real to discount the possibility of it being true. With that power, he bought himself even more power, the crooks wont betray him for the sake of that protection, and the civilians hardly raise against him for the same reason.

_Well that's a twisted way of using fear but it actually might make my life a little bit easier... I can try to bullshit my way out of fighting the bodyguards at least..._ Ryou considered, however that still left the noble himself. No matter if he was one of the legendary heroes or not,Ryou wouldn't pick a fight with Malty at this stage, she could probably run circles around him, despise being a princess... Even Melty could probably floor him if given the chance, so Nobles could still be a problem...

"Is that bastard any strong..? Physically or with magic?" Ryou need to know what exactly he was getting into...

"That midget? He isn't strong at all! That's the reason he as been hiring thugs, he probably knows how to wave a sword around but that's it..." Almond commented, and Ryou almost felt relieved hearing that.

_So if I get pass the bodyguards, I should be in the clear__… However I might not even have to take them on..._ However his train of thought was interrupted by Almond

"That bastard going about it in such a way... He has no right ruling using such tactics! That slime is really profiting quite well from people's fears." Almond finished with a hint of disgust.

That last part brought another memory to the surface…

Flashback

_"Indeed, but before I take my leave__…" she paused, and turned her head in his direction before continuing, "Here's a little piece of interesting trivia, although his Majesty might be making some very questionable decisions as of late, he's still the King of Melromarc, that fact hasn't changed... He will never stand for people who profit from the fear, and devastation brought about by the waves... He might have turned a blind eye to it in the past, especially if it helped in his crusade, but he won't risk angering my mistress anymore than he already did, on that front at least." She finished, and Ryou could only stand there confused._

_"That__…" he begun "…is completely random information, how the hell is that even useful?" The only thing he could gather from that statement, was that the maid pretty much confirmed who her mistress was, if even the king threaded lightly around her._

_"Just something to keep in mind, I'm sure this little piece of knowledge will be useful to you in the future. Well until next time Yuusha-sama, and don't die out there... You are my favorite after all." And the accursed woman actually had the nerve to send him a flying kiss before disappearing._

_After she left, Ryou couldn't help but to mutter, "What was the actual point in all of that..?"_

End of Flashback

"That might just be it…" Ryou murmured, snapping his fingers. He had another thing to pin on the bastard, and with everything else Ryou might just be able to pull this off.

_Right she said that, and it might just be one the key's that I need__…_ Ryou thought, before reaching another conclusion…

_She gave me that piece of complete random information, and stated that it might come in use, and now it actually came be one of the key's towards solving this problem__…Not only that but the timing of the kidnapping… Its just coincidence after coincidence… That Manipulative bitch…_

Ryou didn't knew how the woman had pulled it off, but it was too big of a coincidence. The Shadow Maid, had somehow pulled enough strings, in such a way, that made this entire scenario possible, and had left him with one of the keys to solve it.

_After I__'m done with this I'm going to have some words with that old man… And next time I meet that witch, I'm going to strangle some answers out of her..!_

It wasn't even because of the situation itself, he would help Rishia either way... The problem was he had been played in order to do something for the Shadow Maid, and without his consent or knowledge. If there was one thing Ryou hated it was people who tried to manipulate him.

_But that comes later__… Since so many people like to stick that stupid title on me, I might as well start doing something Heroic, and as cliche as it is, saving a damsel in distress definitely fits the bill…._

* * *

_Next Chapter - The Hero and The Maiden With Poor Luck_


	12. The Hero, and The Maiden with Poor Luck

**A/N - **This one came in a little late, however do to other responsibilities (aka life), the chapters will be coming a little later from now on, but they will still be updated every Friday.

On a different note thanks for the amazing support, and for reaching 300 follows!

Now on with the Chapter! Ryou is about to have a fate changing occurrence, and finally lives up to his hero status... More or less... Also lost of Fuee's...

* * *

**Chapter 12. Wave of Calamity: The Hero, and the Maiden with Poor Luck**

_But that comes later__… Since so many people like to stick that stupid title on me, I might as well start doing something Heroic, and as cliche as it is, saving a damsel in distress definitely fits the bill…._

Taking a deep breath Ryou analyzed his priorities... Saving Rishia came first and foremost, and since sneaking around Gentlewood Lord's mansion would be all but impossible, a direct confrontation would be the only the only way to make his plan work.

"Yuusha-sama have you thought of something?" Almond questioned hopefully.

"Yeah, you actually made me remember something that might help, with everything I have now, I might be able to save Rishia, and put that man out of commission," Ryou stated. His mind whirling with thoughts before articulating them.

"Here's the thing, I don't know if I can solve this with just my authority as hero, even with all the proof, I might not be able to bluff him into submission, however this is the best I could come up with." The whole Hero authority thing was in reality nothing more then an illusion of power - power that only existed in peoples minds. The question now was if Ryou could keep the illusion from shattering.

"Well let's hear this plan of yours Yuusha-sama…" Almond requested, and Ryou elaborated.

* * *

After the plan was explained Almond looked at the young hero in a new light.

"For someone so young you are quite shrewd Ryou-sama." Ryou shook his head after hearing the praise.

"That's not true, this plan as far to many what-ifs for my taste. Honestly its either hit or miss. If we had more time, I might have been able to come up with something better, but right now this is the only one I have." It would have to work because if it didn't both him, and Rishia would be in a lot of trouble.

"Is there anything, I can help with?" Almond asked almost as a plea. No doubt the man wanted to increase the chances of rescuing his daughter by any means possible.

Ryou took a minute to think about all the scenarios before nodding, "Yes there is. I want you to fortify the village, and arm the villagers. If the plan fails, I'll get your daughter out somehow but I doubt they will let us leave just like that. That scumbag might just decide to cut his losses, and come after us. If that happens we will come here, and you should be ready for a battle."

Ryou truly hoped it wouldn't come to that, but better to be ready for any scenario, even the worse case ones.

"Very well Yuusha-sama, I hate to be so powerless but I have no choice but to trust you with the safety of my daughter. I will get this village ready for battle, and we will fight if it comes down to it," Almond declared determined, pressing his fist against his chest.

"Hopefully it won't come to that…" Ryou mumbled, moving towards the door.

"The best of luck! I will pray for your safe return, both yours, and my daughter's." Ryou turned his face towards the man, and nodded before going on his way.

After getting the carriage ready, Ryou went on his way towards Gentlewood Village again. Unfortunately the carriage driver was not the same old man that had hired him, he had been busy running around, however Ryou vowed he would get to the bottom of this situation later, one way or another.

The trip wouldn't take that long, but it gave Ryou some more time to think. Itsuki had been able to bring the lord down, but Ryou wasn't sure if the previous bow hero had done so this soon, the time line was already messed up and it would probably only get worse. Even still Itsuki had a party with him at the time, and Ryou would be going alone with only his wits, hopefully it would be enough, because if the plan didn't work…

_If it turns into a battle__… Someone is going to die…_ Ryou thought grimly. Killing monsters even if they bleed was one thing, killing humans however was a line he wasn't sure he could cross. Pass values ingrained into him since birth, made such a thing an unacceptable act. Nevertheless if it came down to a choice between himself, and them, Ryou would fight first, and deal with the consequences later.

* * *

_Nobles are almost all the same, aren__'t they..?_ Ryou questioned internally observing the mansion before him, or a small palace he really couldn't tell.

Approaching the guards at the gate, they immediately frown at the sight of him.

"Halt! What do you think you are doing here boy?!" One of the two guards demanded, and as far as first impressions went, these people were certainly lacking in hospitality.

Pointing at himself Ryou answered, "Me? I'm the going to meet with the Lord, you will find that he wants to see me." The guard surveyed Ryou with his eyes, before turning to look at the other guard who just shrugged.

"Yeah, I don't think so! Nobody told us to expect visits and, I doubt that Lord Gentlewood will want to meet with a kid like you." The guard crossed his arms at the end of that statement, frowning even deeper when Ryou coughed in his hand.

_Gentlewood..! The village is named after him!? Irony, my lady, I saw what you did here!_ Ryou had to mask the snort that had come out, with very bad timing he might add, but he hadn't been able to help himself. After recollecting himself, he crossed his arms just like the guard.

"Well I'm sure that your Lord will make time to meet with the Yumi-no Yuusha right?" Ryou even punctuated that with a raised eyebrow.

Both guards turned flabbergasted at the announcement before the one that had been silent, spoke with incredulity, "You?! You are one of the Legendary Heroes?!" With a twist of his wrist, the Legendary bow materialized in his hand. The guards once again shared a silent look, then the one who had spoken before replied.

"Please follow me Yuusha-sama, I'll take you to Lord Gentlewood." The guard made a hand motion for him to follow, and Ryou did so keeping his bow unsealed.

They entered through the main hall after crossing a big lavish garden. Inside maids could be seen roaming around, some looked at him in curiosity but no comment was made on the new guest. It took Ryou two full minutes to realize they were taking the scenic route.

_The other one probably went to inform his master of my arrival__…_ This also worked in Ryou's favor. He would be able to get a basic layout of the mansion if things took a turn for the worse.

It was when he reached a intersection that led to a set of stairs that Ryou came to a curious if suspicious sight. Half way on the corridor that intersected with the one he was currently on, there was a door with two guards on each side. Ryou took a curious look, at the sight for a couple of seconds however the guard that was serving as guide interrupted his thoughts.

"This way Yuusha-sama." The man had a frown on his face, and was pointing towards the stairs. Ryou followed but the suspicious feeling remained.

_Well aren__'t you in a hurry all of the sudden, and two thugs guarding a random door..?_

There was a good chance Ryou had just come across the place where Rishia was being held captive, and as much as he wanted to get the poor girl out, he needed to play his cards right.

Climbing the stairs, he was escorted to a double set of doors. The guard stopped before knocking, it took a few moments before a wheezy voice came, through the other side.

"Come in." The guard opened the door and motioned Ryou to step inside. Ryou griped his bow slightly harder, before stepping inside.

_Its show time__…_

The room most prominent colors were white and red, with all manners of decorations from monster skulls to emblems. Two red couches lay in front of a small glass table with a desk at the end of the room, behind it stood a tapestry also red with golden embroilment covering the entire far wall.

Ryou's eyes finally set on the figure seated on the couch, and right then he decided that fate was screwing with him yet again.

_First his name and now this?! This guy looks just like the Gollum only chubbier!_ Ryou thought with equal measure of incredulity, and hilariously. The man look to be around fifty, small but probably weighing more than Ryou. His face pale with big blue eyes, a few grey hairs were still present in a mostly bald head, and sporting a pair of ears that would make him the perfect target for bullies in Ryou's old high school.

Pushing the amusing thoughts aside, and putting his head back into the game Ryou inclined his head in greeting, "Hello, you must be Lord Gentlewood, yes?"

The small noble, clapped his hands a pleasant smile forming on his face,"Yes, that's me and let me tell you this is a unexpected but marvelous surprise! To think that one of the Legendary Heroes would visit not only my town, but also my person, this is such an honor!" The man exclaimed joyously, and Ryou had to compare the man to the slave trader in Melromarc, or at least what he expected the man to act like.

"Indeed, and I have to say Lord Gentlewood, that your town certainly has a 'unique' flavor to it, as does your mansion." Ryou praised back. He also knew how to play that game, it was the same he played with Aultcray.

"I certainly hope so, I worked very hard to make it grow into what it is now, and of course to keep the peace, and stability." Ryou decided right there that among other qualities, Gentlewood loved to hear his own voice, and praise himself.

"The qualities of a true leader." Ryou allowed inclining his head. And with a wave of Gentlewood's hand he took a seat on the couch, however Ryou laid the bow in his lap, one hand just an inch away from the grip.

"Your praise, honors me Yuusha-sama! However, and excuse my curiosity, but what is the reason that brought you to our town?" The Noble questioned, his pudgy hands still clapped together.

"Well you see, I was requested to investigate the unfortunate events that have befallen on Lord Almond's Village, and I had to be sure it wasn't affecting your own village." The name had been thrown on purpose, and Ryou took note at the slight twitch on the man's smile when he heard the name, before his face turned bleak.

"Ahh yes…Truly a horrible set of unfortunate events as you say, we were spared as you can see, but alas that's not completely unexpected…" Gentlewood trailed off, and Ryou narrowed his eyes slightly hearing the statement.

"What do you mean not completely unexpected?" The man begun to tap his knuckles with the fingers on his other hand, before explaining.

"Lord Almond his a great man, truly a person worthy of respect, although some of his decisions are…" The noble paused for a moment before finishing," …questionable at best." Ryou's thoughts were running at a mile per hour trying to figure out what the point of this was, but he decided to bite the bait, that Gentlewood was leaving, and see were he was going.

"Are you saying that the events are Lord Almond's fault?" Ryou questioned, and the question carried a little bit more weight in it. The noble waved his hands trying to diffuse that line of thinking.

"No! No! At least not directly, but you see Yuusha-sama, Almond is not very favored among the rest of nobility. Like I said his decisions are questionable sometimes, and unfortunately it shows, ruling a village takes qualities that not everyone possesses…" The noble was laying breadcrumbs, and Ryou continued to play along although he was beginning to see where the man was going with this.

"Ah, so perhaps if another, wiser leader was chosen, then the village would become more stable, is that what you mean?" Ryou, inquired crossing his arms.

Gentlewood for his part, developed another smile, almost apologetic clapping his hands once again, "Well, I hate to badmouth my old friend Almond, but I must think of the people, and what's better for them."

_So it wasn__'t only Rishia that you were after, it was the whole region..._ It wasn't a bad plan, if Ryou hadn't done his investigation prior, and if he was a brain dead idiot, although with the trend the other three were setting up it was easy to see how Gentlewood thought he could be easily manipulated. Naofumi had been played like a flute, Motoyasu would do everything requested of him as long as it came from a pretty face, and Ren was far more then willing to fall in line as long as he was allowed to do what he pleased. With those thoughts in mind Gentlewood planned to accuse Almond of incompetence, and use Ryou as a mean to get authority over the entire region. Not only would he get what he wanted, but he would also solidify his position when the _unfortunate events_ stopped altogether. Rishia would most likely be reported dead, and since the word would come from such a competent leader nobody would question it.

_What a piece of work this guy is. Wonder if he came with this plan mostly on the fly, or if someone tipped him off before hand__… Well it really doesn't mater at this point…_

"Yes maybe the solution to this problem would be a new leader. I see it now, and given your strong leadership, I should definitely mention you to our Majesty. Of course I understand if you decline, it would be much more work for you after all…" Ryou probed, and the Noble eyes widen before shaking his head.

"No, not at all! No amount of work is too great for the betterment of any village, and I would be honored to take on such a privilege! I'm sure his Highness will see it too when you bring it up to him." And Ryou hummed, before raising himself.

"I'm sure he will. I'm also sure that he will be over the moon when he finds out that one of his nobles is as corrupt, and vile has they come…" Ryou actually manage to throw the accusation out with no emotion besides sending the noble a pointed look.

The noble frowned, looking confused, and also raising himself, "I'm not sure what you mean, Yuusha-sama…"

Ryou finally smiled in his direction, but there was hardly any humor in it, "No? Allow me to elucidate you then. Let's start with a toll thirty times the crown's tax, or maybe bribing, and threatening merchants. Let's not forget the act of terrorizing a neighboring village, and while we are at it how about we add kidnapping to the list." With every accusation the Noble's face became angrier, and flushed until at last he was gritting his teeth.

"Baseless accusations with no proof! I expected better from you Yuusha-sama, and I am deeply offended by them!" The man actually sounded terribly offended, but that was probably do to the anger of having been discovered.

"Feel free to feel as offended as you want, but I have all the proof I will ever need. I just have to step outside, and ask the first merchant I find, they have quite the loose lips with the right incentive you see. I only need to grab one, teleport to Castle town, and be back with a few squadrons of Knights within the hour. Face it, you're finished Gentlewood." Ryou declared with a glare. The other man was sweating, but still managed to form a grin.

"I think you are overestimating yourself Yuusha-sama... Most nobles are corrupt, heck even Aultcray himself! How do you think he ascended to the throne? He won't even bat an eye at such accusation, and even if he does, the worse he will do is a slap on the wrist!" The final part was stated with fake confidence, something that made Ryou smile widely, finally ready to lay down all the cards.

"Yeah your right about that, but he would still imprison you just to satisfy me at the very least, I'm one of the Legendary Heroes after all. But unfortunately for you, your situation is far worse than that. Let me tell you exactly how much you fucked up in comparison to the other corrupt nobles. Right now the entire continent is in a state of cold war. Because of the appearance of the waves, tensions are higher than ever. So, what do you think will happen if it reaches the other countries that a noble in charge of a region under Melromarc's jurisdiction was, not only using the fear of the waves as means to control people, but also spreading false information about them..?"

Gentlewood was sweating rivers by now, but he still managed to talk even if his voice came out shakier then before. "Why would that even matter?!"

"Well it matters because, it will start a war… The situation is so fragile that such information will be more then enough to spark the powder keg. The King, you see, is quite aware of the current political situation. You said he won't care about the fact that you are corrupt... But what if your actions start a war? I can guarantee you right here, right now that your head won't be on your shoulders by the end of this day." Ryou stated with a glare towards the man, although his voice echoed with confidence, inside it was everything but.

_Come on, take the bait__…_

"Well... That will only happen if the information makes it to his Highness..." The noble muttered, his eyes shifting towards the door.

_Dammit..!_

Ryou had the bow ready, and arrow pulled within a second, turning around he leveled it with the guard, that now had a sword in his hand, although the man seemed hesitant.

"If I were you, I would think very carefully about this big guy, do you really want to side with this lying piece of shit…" Ryou warned inclining his head towards the noble "...or with one of the only people between this world and the wave, remember when it comes, an it will, I might be the one saving your ass…" The guard eyes darted between the two a few times before closing them briefly. Letting a huff he stashed his sword in the scabbard, and stepped back towards the door.

"What are you doing! I payed you, I gave you protection in this town and this is how you repay me?!" Gentlewood screamed in outrage. However the bodyguard send him a crooked grin.

"Sorry boss, but you don't get to survive long in this business if you don't know when to pick the winning side, and right now you aren't it." The man finished with a what-can-you.-do shurg.

_And that, as they say, is Game Over__…_ Ryou thought victorious.

"You ungrateful piece of...Eekk!" Gentlewood shrieked the moment an arrow passed right next to his ear, and fell down on his rear, eyes wide opened in fear.

"That's quite enough Lord Gentlewood! Now here's how this is going to go. You are going to get off your ass, get on that desk and write an official document, where you surrender everything that you own including ownership of this village to Lord Almond. After that your going to leave this place, keep your head low, never show your face again, and maybe just maybe at the end of this day you will still get to keep it above your shoulders." Ryou ordered.

"I cant! I'll be ruined!" The old noble pleaded in desperation, inciting Ryou to take a step in his direction slowly.

"Well then, its off to see the King with you, lets see what happens then…" Ryou took another step, and the noble scrambled backwards until he hit the table.

"No, not that! Anything but that! I'll do it, I'll do it!" The man screamed in panic, and if it didn't broke his theater Ryou would have sign in relief.

"Well on with it then, and make sure its authentic, I don't want to have to track you down." Ryou warned. The man crawled hastily around his desk, climbed on his chair, and begun to rake through his desk and drawers.

The bow hero turned his head slightly towards the bodyguard, a small smile on his face. "Hey mate, you mind doing me a favor?" The bodyguard also looked nervous, and seemed hesitant.

"Yes?" Ryou took another look at Gentlewood who had begun to scribe on a fancy parchment, before his eyes returned towards the Bodyguard.

"Can you go get Lord Almond's daughter for me? I'm pretty sure you know where she is. Bring her here, and be gentle with the lady." The Man hesitated for a second before agreeing, and leaving the room.

Ryou focused on the noble then, the man was shaking and sweating probably not used to being the one on the other side of a gun.

_All in all, this actually worked, I was sure it wouldn't, it was mostly bluff after bluff__…_

After a couple of minutes the door opened and Ryou looked in its direction. Coming through was a girl, but the color of her hair immediately gave her away. Green hair tied into two braids, she was a few centimeters short of his own height. Her clothing was rather plain with a green colored sleeveless dress, along with a cream colored shirt, and with what might be leggings under the dress. If Ryou didn't know before hand of her lineage he would have ruled her as a normal civilian. Although it was her eyes that held most of his attention, they were a beautiful lime tone, that shined far more then her father's, although they were both tinged with a slight redness and puffy, adding to that was the fact that she still had tears running down her face, and it became easy to see, that she had been crying her soul out. However besides that, she looked more or less alright so that seemed to be a good sign.

Putting on what he hoped was a reassuring smile, eyes softening slightly he addressed the girl.

"Hi, you're Rishia right?" Shaking slightly, she nodded.

"Okay, name's Ryou Takuma, and I'm here on your father's behalf to liberate you. I just have to finish cleaning up this mess and I'll take you to him. okay?" Rishia raised her head after she heard the proclamation, even if there was a trace of disbelief in her face.

"Fuee…. R-really?" She asked sniffling very lightly.

"Yeah, you don't have to worry anymore, your safe now." Ryou assured, and the green haired girl started crying again, but Ryou could almost bet this time it was from relief.

After Gentlewood, finished writing the document, Ryou picked it up, and looking at it he remembered something.

_Right, I can__'t read squat of what's written in here much less confirm if it's even legitimate…_ Ryou thought face scrunching up. before his eyes fell on the new guest in the room.

_She is also a noble, and is pretty smart has far as I can remember..._

"Hey Rishia, can you check to see if this is a legitimate document?" Ryou asked, and the girl gave a small jump at being addressed, before grabbing the document hesitantly. cleaning her eyes with her sleeve, she began surveying the document after a moment her face morphed into disbelief.

"T-This is… this is a document passing all of Lord Gentlewood's possessions to father, i-including lordship over Gentlewood Village…" Rishia exclaimed amazed, holding the parchment with shaking hands.

"Is it authentic?" Ryou inquired, and the girl nodded half minded.

"Good, then let's get out of here." Ryou exclaimed, before pulling another arrow and pointing at the Noble, making Rishia gasp, and the Old noble blanch.

"You, move it!" The order was punctuated with a head tilt towards the door, and the noble quickly followed it, Ryou trailing behind both him, and the Bodyguard, with Rishia two steps behind the Bow Hero.

After walking for a minute Ryou realized that the entire mansion was now free of thugs, only the maids remained. He spared the bodyguard a small look, as realization hit him.

_He probably warned the others of what was going on, and they made a run for it__… Guess there's still loyalty between thief's…_

Reaching the Main door Ryou kicked the Noble out, before signaling towards the gate.

"Start running, and never come back, my threat still stands, pull something remotely nefarious again, and there's no country you can hide where I wont find you, got it? "

Gentlewood nodded rapidly before taking off sprinting as fast has his legs allowed him, which wasn't all that fast to begin with.

_This might come back to bite me in the ass, but he is powerless now, and he__'ll be hunted down the moment I tell Aultcray about this, I'll clean my hands off of him now…_

Ryou thought watching the men running. Eyes shifting he noticed the bodyguard was squirming a little in place.

"Listen... Since you were such a good sport, I'll let you leave. So get out of here." The bodyguard sent him a thankful grin, and turned to leave but stopped after a couple of steps.

"I'm sorry, but this is really bothering me. If you knew that the boss was corrupt from the start, why did you let the entire thing drag on, as you did?" Ryou eyed the bodyguard for a few moments, pondering whether to answer that or not, before deciding there was no harm in it.

"Because people's motivations are important, even for a piece of shit like him. For example I came here only knowing that he was after Rishia, but after that little theater, I found out he was actually after the whole region." Ryou confined in the bodyguard, who nodded in understanding.

"I see now, you are one of those scary plotting types…" A snort was heard, because the phrasing almost appeared to make Ryou the villain in the whole situation.

"Get out of here." The bodyguard took the Hero's advice, and bolted far faster then Gentlewood did.

Finally mostly alone Ryou allowed himself to relax slightly. He had achieved what he had set out to do, and that was saving the girl now standing behind him.

"Ready to return home?" Ryou asked, with a small lazy smile.

"Fuee! Yes, please…"

* * *

After arriving at Northern village, they had been greeted to a fortress, with villagers armed with everything from swords to pitch forks, thankfully there had been no need for it. The tearful meeting between Father and Daughter, had brought a soft smile to Ryou's face, along with another feeling he couldn't even begin to identify.

"Yuusha-sama, thank you! I don't know how I could ever repay you!" Almond exclaimed, bowing to Ryou, who looked, and felt embarrassed rubbing the back of his neck.

"Fuee! Yuusha-sama?" Rishia questioned, her eyes going wide.

"Yes?" Ryou questioned with a tilt of his head.

Rishia's eyes almost fell out with how wide they opened, her mouth forming a small 'o', before she snapped out of whatever was in her mind, waving her hands in front of her.

"Yuusha-sama, you are one of the Four legendary Heroes?" Ryou, tilted his head to the other side before nodding

"Something like that, yeah…" Face flushing she began to tap her fingers, before Almond decided to intervene.

"Rishia, this young man that saved you, is Ryou-sama, the Yumi no Yuusha!" Almond proclaimed.

Rishia for her part, still looked flushed, hands clasping in front of her, and stared at him in awe. Ryou couldn't help but to feel slightly nervous at how much worship was in those eyes.

_What__'s up with that look she's giving me..?_ The Bow hero wondered if this was what it felt like to be under a spotlight, like a rock star or famous football player.

* * *

Reporting to Lord Almond, that he was now not only, hundreds of times wealthier, but also lord of two villages, was met with disbelief, although those doubts were mostly dispelled since he had the document to support it. There were still some fears concerning the King's reaction, though Ryou promised to soothe any waves that would arise from it, even if he hated the idea of having to meet with Aultcray, it was still a better alternative then finishing this in an half-assed manner, and having to live with the mortification of Naofumi cleaning up after him.

He had also been invited for dinner with the Ivyred's, as well as to spend the night, this took some persuading from Almond for Ryou to accept, however his wallet spoke higher in the end.

Dinner had been interesting to say the least. They had fleshed out some details about Almond's new duties along with the retelling of how he had brought Gentlewood down.

Ryou had also gotten to know Rishia a little better during the meal. Apparently the shy young woman, had studied in Faubley, and showed great proficiency in the magic department, unfortunately she eventually had to drop off school when her father's authority begun to shrink. Aultcray had chipped away their status as nobility, and almost outright cut ties with them because Almond had questioned some of the rules regarding Demi-humans. The bow hero had also questioned Rishia about her mother, noting her absence in all of this, and apparently the women was one of the Queens aids, and was out of the country with the Ruler who was no doubt trying to solve the mess her husband had made.

The following morning, Ryou had gotten out of bed early, intent on making his way back to Castle town has fast as possible, there was little time before the wave, and he wanted to make as much progress as possible.

Unfortunately, his hosts had once again extended the invitation to join them for breakfast, and he couldn't find a good excuse to avoid it, especially since Rishia among other qualities had a very good hand when it came to cooking, maybe even better then he did.

It was during said breakfast, that another bomb was dropped on his lap, one that would forever change his fate. Rishia had come down from her room a nervous wreck, for some reason he couldn't identify. She spent the entirety of the time fidgeting, eyes taking peeks at him every now and them, but refused to met his questioning gaze every time..

It wasn't until the end of the meal that Almond decided to put an end to it, after wiping his mouth.

"Ryou-sama, Rishia has something she would like to ask you." The lord sent his daughter a pointed looked, one she responded like she had suffered the biggest of betrayals, face flushing pink, before she started stuttering like crazy while waving her hands vigorously.

"Rishia deep breaths, I can't understand word of what you're saying." Ryou almost begged kindly, because the girl looked like she was one step away from having a nervous breakdown.

"R-Ryou-sama, I-I would like to j-join your party!" She begun muttering, still stuttering but ended in a high pitch. Ryou for his part was floored with the request.

_What?_ Sure originally Rishia had joined Itsuki's party, and later joined Naofumi's party. But the biggest question was the one he found stating.

"Why?" He was completely confused. Why would she want to join on what would soon turn to be a very real war, It made no sense to him.

"R-Ryou-sama, me. and the r-rest of my family owe you a d-debt we will n-never be able to r-repay. So even if i-im not strong, I want to b-be of use in any way I can!" She stuttered and was fidgeting, but there was something more in her eyes, they had resolution in them. Still Ryou was not having any of it.

"You don't owe me anything, I didn't save you expecting a reward, I did it because I wanted too. You have no idea what you're sacrificing with such a request. I'm happy, really I am, but I can't accept such a thing. The waves are terrible things, and I won't let you get subjected to that, not when you have both a choice, and your entire life ahead of you." Ryou stated completely serious. He didn't had a choice when it came to fighting, but Rishia did.

She looked down, clenching her hands tightly, before she met his eyes with her own, looking even more resolute now.

"B-but I do owe you! I owe you m-my life, and most likely my family's! Also I'm offering this of my own free will!" She exclaimed, beginning a battle of wills, with both staring at each other even if the girl was squirming slightly. Finally after a few moments they were interrupted by a polite cough.

"Ryou-sama, I understand where you are coming from, as a father I completely disavow this decision. However Rishia is my heir, and she's already old enough to make her own decisions in life. Having said that, as head of the Ivyred family, I couldn't be more proud if she were to join your party." Once again Ryou was floored. Even her father who had been so worried about her safety the day before was condoning this.

_She as her entire future in front of her, and yet she wants to go fight a war? Thats insane! I know she__'s not weak, but still…_

According to his memories, and observations, she was smart, very much so, being responsible for Naofumi's victory in the fourth wave. She also had amazing talent in magic. If Ryou was to be honest with himself, he was in dire need of a party member, that had been something on his mind since the battle with the wolves.

_I was thinking of someone to take care of melee range, not magic. Although she can probably be considered support too, and with her talent and smarts, she could probably teach me how to use magic easily__… But even so…_

"Rishia, I'm going to tell you again, the waves aren't a game, even with the four legendary heroes we might not win, that's how bad they will be. I can throw comforting words around, like _I__'ll protect you_, or _I__'ll look after you_, but they will only amount to so much. I can't guarantee your safety, nor that you will return after everything is done." Ryou explained patiently, but with all the seriousness such a topic deserved, but to his surprise instead of backing down the girl in front of him smiled, a small sad smile.

"Ryou-sama, you said it yourself, the waves will be t-terrible, so there's no doubt they will e-eventually reach this village. If such a thing happens, t-then my fate will be the same either way...At least this w-way I can try to protect what little I can…" She declared in a soft tone but filled with conviction. Ryou could not find any fault in that kind of logic even if he wanted too.

This would change things yet again, because if he agree to it he wouldn't be kicking her out of the party, Ryou knew he had a crappy personality, but he wasn't that big of a douche, so she would never join Naofumi's party.

Although things were bound to change anyway, and she would be a very nice addition. No doubt she possessed amazing potential, everyone in Naofumi's party did...

_This girl__…_ He thought with exasperation resigning himself, after that heartfelt, and logical argument he had already come to a decision.

"Just so you know, I'm still against this, but since I have a feeling you won't back down I'll agree to it." Ryou finally relented, letting his head drop slightly, and his new party member let out a breath in relief.

"Fuee… It seems my lucky star finally shined through." She exclaimed.

Ryou raised his eyebrows. "Lucky star? What?"

It was Almond however that answered, after a snort,"You see Yuusha-sama, my daughter believes she carries misfortune with her wherever she goes, a idiotic notion if you ask me…" the noble commented with amusement.

_Misfortune? Were completely screwed, aren't we..?_ Ryou contemplated with a little bit of apprehension while turning his head towards Rishia slowly, almost mechanically.

"Rishia, I seriously hope that's an exaggeration, because if it's true between your bad luck, and mine, this might be a disaster waiting to happen…" He lamented, and she looked horror stricken.

"Fuee! Ryou-sama forgive me! I'll try my very best not to let my bad luck be a burden to you!" She pledge in panic, waving her hands. Ryou just raised his hands apart in front of himself palms up, in a _calm-down fashion_ now completely confused by her logic.

"Rishia that makes absolutely zero sense!"

She continued to apologize even with Ryou trying to calm her, and explain that she couldn't control things like luck or fate. Between them Almond just chortled…

I_ think these two will be just fine__… You made the right choice Rishia, and by yourself too... As your father I couldn't be prouder of you..._

* * *

_Next Chapter: Return, and Final Preparations_


	13. Return, and Final Preparations

**A/N - **I'm back with another chapter, and with a week of vacation, sop I'll try to make it double chapter release next week.

Well that's that, Ryou, and Rishia finally come back, get ready, and the Wave hits...

* * *

**Chapter 13. Wave of Calamity: Return, and Final Preparations**

I_ think these two will be just fine__… You made the right choice Rishia, and by yourself too... As your father I couldn't be prouder of you..._

After another tearfully embrace between Rishia and Almond, the new addition to his party grabbed her own bag (that had been prepared the night before much to Ryou's annoyance), and they went on their way, or at least tried to, but unfortunately fate appeared set on making Ryou waste even more time.

Right before leaving, one of the villagers came to them with another request, one that sent a small shiver down Ryou's spine. Rishia on the other hand was more then used to deal with what appeared to be a common occurrence in the village.

"The man asked us to deal with a spider in his basement… How big of a spider are we talking about here?" Ryou questioned Rishia, his voice just a bit lower. There was no way it was a normal sized one, hardly any creature was normal sized in this world.

"I-Its about this b-big," Rishia exemplified with her hand hovering a little above her waist, Ryou took in a sharp breath at the description. It was even bigger then he was expecting.

"And you say you do this all the time?" There might have been an hint of doubt in his voice, but no one could blame him, the last thing he pegged Rishia as, was has a part-time monster-exterminator.

"Y-Yes, sometimes when father is busy. Since I-I know some magic, I-I deal with the s-spiders that sometimes wander i-into the v-villagers houses." Another shiver ran up his spine, since apparently dog-sized spiders, were common if uninvited guests around here.

_At least that means she as some experience dealing with monsters, but that begs the question__…_

"Rishia, if your used to deal with this kind of thing, and are strong enough to deal with monsters, how exactly did you ended up being kidnapped in the first place?" Ryou almost immediately felt bad with how blunt he was, because her shoulders dropped slightly.

"Fuee... I'm not very strong… The spiders are easy to deal with, and give me time to chant…" It almost sounded like an excuse, however it this instance it was a very valid reason. Magic took some time to unleash in most instances, and there was no telling if the kidnappers had information on Rishia or not.

_If she does this sometimes then the information that she prefers magic is most likely out there, and since she__'s not good at other styles of fighting suppressing her shouldn't be that hard, even for a common thug at least at this point…_

"We are going to have to work on that, not everything we are going to face is going to give you time to use magic, you know that right?" The green haired girl nodded with a little bit more intensity then necessary.

"Y-Yes Ryou-sama!" He was satisfied with that, even if he felt slightly disgruntled at the honorific used.

"Good, so let me see how you do this."

The entrance to the basement, was just a door with stairs leading down into the darkness. Reaching the end of the stairs, Ryou could see a gigantic web on the other side of the room. He then felt his hairs on his arm rising, at the sight of the creature that was hunch in a corner.

_Why__… Why spiders, and why so big…_ Ryou wondered. Since little he had a slight fear of arachnids in general, but usually it didn't have much impact his life. Here though? There were spiders the size of dogs, and his fears where re-awoken. Thankfully his partner didn't share his fears of arachnids, and after mumbling a chant with her hand extended, she released what Ryou could only explain as a sharp blade of wind, that cut the spider from top to bottom, and instantly killed the abomination.

Rishia, then explained that the villager would dispose of the body. Unfortunately Ryou couldn't allow that to happen before he had a turn much to his disgust, and apprehension. With shaky hands, Ryou dismantle the spider, before grabbing a furry leg, and absorbing it.

**[Northern Spider Bow - Equipment Bonus - +3 Agility, Gripping Skill]**

Ryou then explained what he had just done to Rishia, since it was necessary for his party members to know how he upgraded his weapon.

With the simple deed done, they were showered with appreciation from the villager, much to the girl's embarrassment.

_If she does this regularly, one would expect her to be used to this at least__…_ Came the thought watching the girls face gain some more color, and her feeble attempts to stop the praise from coming.

Thankfully, that was the last interruption they had before going on their way back to the Capital. The driver was once again the old farmer that had hired him, and the Bow Hero took that opportunity to question the man about the mission. As it had turned out, the money for the mission had been provided by a beautiful woman, who had not given any information besides the existence of a party interested in solving the situation. By the woman's general description Ryou confirmed his suspicions, and swore once again to have a few words with the Shadow Maid next time they met.

On a different note, after adding Rishia to his party, Ryou had discovered some very interesting facts about his new companion.

The first had been that she possessed an higher level then himself, after the incident with the wolves, and killing monsters on the road he had reach level fourteen, Rishia's own level was eighteen. It actually made sense since she had been studying magic from a young age, and was apparently a part-time spider exterminator.

This lead to another discovery. After inquiring the girl about her magic, he found out much to his surprise that she could apparently use all forms of magic. Rishia mentioned she had not been particular good at any type back in college. A jack of all trades so to speak, but in Ryou's mind there existed another possibility. Instead of not being particular good at any type, if one was to take the fact that she had been part of Naofumi's party in another reality, then that probably meant she would eventually be insanely good at every single one.

In gaming terms, his new party member would most likely become one hell of a _Nuker_.

He had also inquired about her battle experience, and predictably she had nearly none since spiders hardly made for a challenging foe from what he had observed, and that was something he vouched to work as soon as possible.

During the trip back, Ryou also suffered another embarrassing moment to add to the count, only made worse because now he had a new party member that observed the Bow Hero make an idiot out of himself.

His new skill, the _Gripping Skill_, allowed Ryou to cling to surfaces with his hands, and feet. When he figured this particular piece of information out, the next step had obviously been trying to run up a vertical surface, and since during the trip they were mostly surrounded by trees, the target became a no-brainier. Unfortunately, Ryou made only an amazing amount of five steps up the tree, before he came crashing down with his back hitting the harden dirt. The damage was mostly to his pride, and it only became worse when Rishia quickly crouched next to him asking if he was alright, her face, and voice full of worry

After that Ryou decided to take the sensible approach, something he should have done right from the beginning. After some testing he finally figured out the way his new skill worked, and it wasn't as useful as he had imagined. While the _Gripping Skill_ allowed Ryou to walk on vertical surfaces, in an act the defied gravity, he had to use the skill every time his feet met a surface, losing its effect the moment they lost contact - this not only drained his SP, (even if it only used very small amounts), but he also had to think, and concentrate to use it making the process of climbing the tree almost painfully slow.

However the Bow Hero was determined to master this new skill to the point where he could use it in battle. Mainly through repetition until it became second nature. It would be a long process, but the ability to relocate himself not only horizontally, but vertically was too good to pass up, especially since he was mostly range focused .

* * *

"Fuee! This is Castle town?!" Rishia exclaimed with admiration, gazing at the town before her, eyes sparkling.

Looking back to the girl, Ryou questioned, "You never been to Castle Town before?"

Rishia just shook her head, before falling in step with the bow hero, taking in everything.

"How does it compare to Faubley?" He had been curious about the other countries, knowing them only by name.

"Y-you mean the Capital City?" She inquired which he confirmed.

"I never been there, my college was near the border, but the town where it was located was more advanced in technology then Melromarc in g-general. B-But I heard that they have carriages that move by themselves in the Capital City!" Ryou took a brief stop to actually process that.

_Cars? There's a country with cars in this world?_ From what Ryou had seen that implied a really big discrepancy in technology. Melromarc was stuck in the middle ages, and Faubley was at the very least in the industrial era.

_Makes you wonder what other technologies they have already developed__…_ A terrifying thought, especially given the fact that they were not fond of Melromarc. It was enough to once again question the King's sanity in pulling the stunt that had nearly marked his country as a world enemy. Ryou was stronger now no doubt about that, and definitely faster but dodging bullets, and cannon balls was not yet in the realm of possibility

_Well hopefully they still have ways to go before bombers or god forbid it, nuclear reactions, because if they are already on that stage I__'ll just tap out…_

"Ryou-sama?" Ryou twitched, being completely engrossed in his thoughts. Rishia had a worried look, and was peering at him slightly angled to look at his face.

"Yeah?" He questioned, before avoiding, and throwing an annoyed look towards the civilian, that decided the middle of the street had been the perfect place to go window shopping.

"Y-You had a strange look on your face just now…" Ryou waved off her worries.

"Don't worry about it, I was just contemplating world ending disasters, and stuff like that.".

Her expression changed to a pensive one, "Ryou-sama also thinks about really deep things too?" She questioned, finger touching her chin, gaze upwards.

"More like I'm really paranoid…" He muttered, looking down before his eyes snapped up again, not wanting to actually run into another civilian this time.

"What was that Ryou-sama?", She questioned, now right by his side, Ryou actually took a step sideways when he noticed.

"Nothing, nothing! By the way, just so you know, we are going to make a stop at the Castle, I have to speak with the king about what happened to your village, and with Gentlewood…" He trailed off, noticing she had gone pale at the mention of the old noble. A dreaded, and horrible thought made its way into to front of his mind

_I never considered it because our response was pretty fast, and she looked fine, but she was still kidnapped for a few hours__…_ Positioning himself in front of the girl, he locked eyes with her.

"Rishia, besides kidnapping you, did…" Gulping, and collecting himself, Ryou then continued,"...did they do anything else to you?" He asked lowly, looking strait in her eyes, one hand grabbing her lower arm.

"Fuee? Anything else? T-they, threw me down into the basement, and locked me in there. I-It was really dark, and scary before the other man came to get me." Ryou looked in her eyes for a few moments, her face flushing under the scrutiny before he release a breath of relief, and her arm.

A few moments later he realized they were in the middle of the street, a very populated street, and since the entire town knew who he was, every single person in sight had stopped to look at the scene.

Feeling his face getting slightly warm at the attention, Ryou restarted his trip to the castle, now in a faster pace .

"Fuee! Ryou-sama wait for me!" Rishia cried out, almost tripping on her feet trying to catch up with the hero.

_There better not be any weird rumors tomorrow, or I__'ll flip…_

* * *

The discussion with Aultcray had actually gone much better than expected. After explaining the situation, and exactly what Gentlewood had been doing, the King went slightly pale before thanking Ryou for his services towards the country, and helping maintaining peace. Although Aultcray had questioned his decision on giving Almond the right to rule Gentlewood Village, after a few logical arguments, the man dropped the issue with reasonable ease.

The pair's next stop was the Dragon Hourglass, Ryou wanted to know exactly how much time he had left before the wave.

Thankfully the church had been Pope free, he really didn't want to deal with a religion fanatic, from what he remembered from canon the Pope couldn't be reasoned with, and Ryou would bet that the real version would be very much the same if not worse.

After checking the hourglass, a timer appeared on his screen. Seven days, a week… Less then he wanted, but then again if Ryou had the power to do so, the waves would never be a thing in the first place.

The time until the wave was expected, and they would make do, no choice about it.

Another curiosity was that the timer stayed on the corner of his status window, so he made mental note of checking the hourglass after this wave, that way he could keep track of it.

The last stop Ryou, and Rishia made for the day was the blacksmith, aka Erhard.

Reaching the blacksmith's store, Ryou wasted no time in opening the door before proclaiming.

"Old man! I have returned and I'm in need of your services once more!" After his grand entrance, Ryou took notice that he had an audience, audience that was currently in the process of judging him with a raised eyebrow.

_I was under the impression he staid in Lute village until a day or two before the wave__… Well whatever…_ A smirk bloomed in his face, "I have been gone for two entire weeks... So why is it, that one of the first familiar faces I see after getting back as to be your ugly mug?"

The owner of said face, scowled crossing his arms. "That's my line Ryou…"

But before he could reply another voice reached him, "Kid I see your still alive!" Erhard stated in his usual lively voice, perched on the counter.

"Disappointed Old man?" Ryou asked tilting his head.

Erhard shook his head sightly, "Nah, I would be disappointed if you died, I would lose my second favorite customer after all."

Ryou took two steps towards the man eyes narrowed. "Second, what do you…" Ryou trailed off when, another figure appeared in his field of vision, one that had been standing behind Naofumi. He had been expecting it. It had been shown in the story, but seeing it in reality was quite different. No longer a child, but now a young woman, she had definitely changed, shockingly so.

"Raphtalia?" Ryou questioned blinking owlish at the not so little girl in front of him.

The demi-human, smiled softly, before bowing her head slightly, "Ryou-sama its good to see you again."

It was definitely a strange sight, however Ryou observed something else.

_She's...She's, actually taller than me__…_ For some reason that irked him, it wasn't much, maybe three or four centimeters. He had never been self conscious of his height before, however since coming to this world that had changed. Maybe it had something to do with being a hero, since normally heroes were portrait as tall, and imposing.

"Hey Naofumi, what the hell have you been feeding Raphtalia?" He asked his fellow hero, still in astonishment. Although he knew it had to do with the leveling process, there was still a need to ask.

Naofumi response came down with all the subtlety of lighting from the heavens," A few kid meals here and there, maybe you should try some…"

_Motherfucker!_ Ryou raged in his head along with a death glare at Naofumi, and that bastard was actually looking quite smug about it too.

"Go screw yourself Naofumi!" The bow hero snapped, even if he would begrudgingly admit in his head that he had walked straight into that one.

Erhard laughed out loud, while Raphtalia hid her giggle behind a hand however her eyes filled with mirth gave her away.

"Fuee, Ryou-sama?" That broke him out of trying to set Naofumi on fire with his eyes, and everyone in the store turned towards the new guest.

"Right, right, introductions and all that." Ryou stated before pointing to Erhard.

"That guy over there behind the counter, is Erhard, our go to blacksmith, he is a nice guy when he isn't trying to squeeze every coin you have."

A frown developed on the blacksmith's face when he heard the introduction.

"Kid what kind of introduction is that!? Are you trying to put a stain on my good name?!" he demanded, and was obviously ignored since Ryou had already pointed towards the next person.

"Nasty face with an even nastier personality over there is Iwatani Naofumi, he's the Shield Hero." Rishia gave a soft gasp at that information, and Naofumi's scowl only got more sever.

"Yeah well, next time this nasty personality of mine is going to let you become wolf food…" he retorted followed by a very scandalized Raphtalia calling out his name, Ryou however decided to pour a little more gas on it, unabated.

"And as you can see, he can also hold grudges, and debts over peoples heads for a lifetime." Cue even nastier scowl. Pointing to the last member he continued.

"And that's Raphtalia, she's the only good egg in the bunch." Raphtalia took it in good nature with a shallow bow towards Rishia.

Waving his hand towards the new addition Ryou finished, "And this is Rishia Ivyred, she's the new member that strong armed her way into my party recently." Now was his turn to be on the receiving end of a scandalized retort, one that Ryou skillfully ignored.

Turning towards every one, since her party leader had apparently developed a deaf hear to her complains, she bowed at the waist."I-It's a pleasure to meet everyone, I'll be in your care from now on."

Naofumi for his part, raised an eyebrow followed by a "Whatever". Thankfully Raphtalia was a far better sport, and took a shining at the new girl immediately striking a conversation.

_Well her only human contact for some time has been Naofumi, and that's a nightmare if I ever saw one, though I doubt she feels the same, but it makes sense she's trilled at meeting another girl..._

"Hey kid, are you taking a card out of the Shield kid's book, and came here to brag?" Erhard commented annoyed, supporting his chin on his palm.

"Brag? Brag about what? You know what, never mind about that, I came here to get some upgrades and gear for Rishia." Ryou interjected. The blacksmith let a soft grunt, before his eyes moved towards the green haired girl.

"Do you already have something in mind for her?" Ryou scratched his cheek looking around the assortment of armors on display. He had thought about it, more or less, and decided to vocalize those thoughts.

"Well… Rishia's biggest talent is magic, so I was thinking something like my armor? Maybe lighter, since she'll fight like me at a range so it would be best if she remained mobile..." Erhard hummed, before going into the back.

Naofumi at this point decided to make his voice heard.

"What about a weapon?" Ryou looked, towards his fellow hero who was in what Ryou now knew was his go to position, with his arms crossed leaning against a corner.

"Definitely. But with so little time until the wave hits, it might be counterproductive to focus on more then one thing." Ryou thought out loud.

Shifting a little, Naofumi continued with his reasoning, "Maybe, but unlike us she doesn't have any restrictions, isn't that something you should take advantage off?" The Shield Hero's words had a little truth to them. Even if you possessed amazing speed, depending on the terrain you couldn't always stay at ranged, and Rishia wasn't has fast as he was, not only that there were no guaranties she could make through the wave unharmed with only magic.

"What do you think about getting a weapon, Rishia?" The question startled the girl out of whatever she had been talking with Raphtalia in hushed tones.

"Fuee… A weapon Ryou-sama? I'm not very good with weapons…" She explained her eyes lowering slightly.

Ryou released a slightly annoyed sigh, "I'm not asking you to become a master swords woman with so little time, but you know you won't always have time to cast magic, its better to have something you can defend yourself with if needed."

She looked slightly up, nodding, and began surveying the weapons displayed around the store with her eyes for a moment, before her eyes returned to her party leader.

"R-Ryou-sama what would be a good weapon for me?" Ryou scratched his head. He didn't have the slightest idea. He's go to answer would normally be a sword, because swords were awesome, but that would be some really asinine logic when choosing a weapon.

While he thought about it, Erhard returned carrying so many armor parts, you couldn't see his face, before dropping them in the counter.

"Here we go, now you can choose!" Erhard exclaimed with a huff, and Rishia looked astonished at the sheer amount of parts.

_Well better consult the specialist then... _Ryou decided. He really had no idea how to even go at picking a weapon for someone.

"Old man while you're at it, can you help her pick a weapon." Ryou questioned, Erhard just shrugged before asking Rishia to show her hands.

* * *

Two hours later...

After another tryout session in this particular shop, Rishia had something resembling protective gear made of light metal. A chest piece, along with shoulder, and arm armor with a short skirt over her normal dress. As the name implied. light metal was both light yet durable and also expensive.

Ryou was grateful that Erhard hadn't brought out anything resembling what Rishia normally wore in the manga. Contrary to people's beliefs. he had his limits, and he certainly would not have a Furry in his party. Not only would someone dressed as an animal look ridiculous ,but nobody would take neither Rishia or himself seriously.

_Although__… That idea as one positive… It's all fun and games until a furry pop's out of a bush, and blasts your head off with a fireball._

The mental image of Rishia wearing a beaver suit, and jumping from a bush hulling fireballs at random crooks, was both disturbing and amusing, so much that made Ryou snort.

Has for a weapon, she had settled for a rapier, a silver colored one, with metal twisting at the handle in some form of hand guard.

Ryou had also ordered a new custom made armor, using most of the materials he had gathered from his travel along with the Great Dire Wolf pelt. All-in-all Erhard had taken most of his savings, but if it allowed them to make it pass the wave in good health, it would be worth it.

"Ryou-sama, I like it, but I really don't know how to use it…" Rishia commented holding the weapon in her hand.

Crossing his arms, looking at the beautiful weapon in the girls hands, Ryou elaborated, "Like I said, I don't expect to you to master it anytime soon, but you should at least figure out where the pointy end goes. I also want to get a better feel for your fighting style, and have us working with some degree of teamwork...We have seven days until the wave, and I want to make the most of them." Hopefully it would be enough. The first wave the heroes had fought hadn't been too hard, nothing compared to the others, but with so many discrepancies, he couldn't bet their lives on it…

"Seven days to the wave? How do you know that?" Naofumi questioned confused. Ryou glanced at the other hero, beckoning him to scoot over with a movement of his hand, and opened his status window

"See that timer? That's the time until the wave…" Ryou explained, pointing towards the small box at the corner, that displayed a seven followed by a thirteen.

"How come you have a timer to the wave?" The Shield Hero questioned again but now a frown was marring his face. Ryou then explained the Dragon hourglass, and how the timer worked.

Nodding after the explanation, Naofumi went on his way to the Church with Raphtalia following behind.

* * *

"Yah!" The shout came from down the hill, that Ryou was seated on observing his companion fighting.

With a fast straight thrust, the balloon disappeared from existence. The owner then ducked under another one that had tried its luck on going for her head, Turning around, with a rising diagonal slash, the other creature popped. Releasing a breath, Rishia cleaned the sweat on her forehead, before looking up the hill to where the bow hero was located.

"Ryou-sama I think that's the last of them!" Ryou hummed, and took a look towards the left, seeing a few more trails in the grass, pointing he replied.

"Think again, you have more company…" Rishia, turned around, now locating the trails moving towards her, eyes closing in concentration she extended one of her hands.

"As source of thy power, I order thy. Decipher the laws of Nature, and scorch the land before me!" Rishia finished chanting and opened her eyes, In front of her hand was now an orb of fire the size of a basket ball, a moment later she released her attack with a shout.

"Faust Fire Blast!" Ryou admired mesmerized as the projectile shoot forward, leaving a trail of burned grass where it passed, before impacting on the ground in front of the trails. With a loud boom, it exploded. The Bow Hero had never seen a rocket launcher fire in real life, but he had a feeling it would be something similar, maybe with less fire. Hot air hit him making his black hair blow back a little.

_I wonder if a first level magic, should be this strong, or is this her amazing magical potential showing?_ Ryou wondered in amazement. Now with one day before the wave, he had put both himself, and his partner through the ringer. What had started as a very clumsy attempt at poking balloons, had in the space of a week turn Rishia into a decent melee fighter in his opinion, she still had her clumsy moments, but he was far more then pleased with the results.

However, magic was definitely where the green haired girl shined the most. During these six days, Ryou watched her unleash an arsenal of elements that would make most magicians jealous. When Rishia had mentioned she could use every type of magic, the girl hadn't been kidding - from healing, to increasing their defense by the way of support magic, or even shooting out blades of wind and lightning bolts, she could do it all. Honestly, it was humbling to see, and Ryou had no doubt if it wasn't for her general clumsiness, lack of faith in her abilities, and his status as hero, she had enough potential to leave him in the dust.

The mentioned girl, had once again turned towards him, waving her arms in the air to get his attention. Ryou gave her a thumbs up, before once again pointing, this time behind her. It appeared that her explosion had attracted inhabitants from the forest as a pair of _Usapils_ came hopping towards her.

Startled, she scurried away releasing her verbal tic, and almost tripping on her own feet. Ryou released a chuckle at the sight, Rishia wouldn't be Rishia without her clumsiness, and her 'Fuee's'.

Finally making some distance between the creatures, she once again raised her rapier, and waited before both of them were within striking distance. Dogging left, her feet almost gliding like a dancer, she stabbed one with another straight thrust in the head. Quickly pulling her rapier, within moments she crossed the distance between the final _Usapil_, before slashing it across the face, blood spluttering, and the creature released a shriek before it too fell, courtesy of a stab between the eyes.

Those were other things he had picked up about Rishia in these few days. The girl didn't even bat an eye at the sight of blood. He had expected someone as shy as her, to balk at the sight, before remembering that even has a noble, she worked in a farm and was probably used to it, not even mentioning her spider extermination activities, even if the arachnids bleed purple.

The other thing was that she always gave away space before re-positioning herself, and attacking. Perhaps that had been an habit she picked from watching him fight. Rishia could also be extremely clumsy one moment, and an elegant fighter completely commanding the flow battle the next, like there was a switch in her head that turned battle mode on, and off.

Taking a look at the sun to measure the time, he decided to call it quits, "Rishia that's enough, we have to get going!"

The girl, collected the bodies of the rabbit like creatures, before trekking up to where he was.

Breathing a little harder then normal, she put the _Usapils_ near him.

"We're not going to keep training?" She asked, and Ryou finished dismantling the small creatures before shaking his head.

"No, we did all we could, I still need to pick up my armor, so until the wave we will take it easy and rest, okay?" She looked slightly worried, but agreed nonetheless.

* * *

After picking up his new armor, that still resembled his old one, only with patches of grey fur on it. Ryou couldn't help but to vocalized his distaste even if the stats spoke for themselves. The armor, not only provided better overall defense, but apparently Dire Wolf Fur was fire resistant. The only problem now was, he looked like something an Orc Shaman would use. However he had to put a lid on it when Rishia stated he looked like a true hero, even if her tastes were questionable in his opinion.

Since they had spent the entire week camping in the woods, Ryou decided that their last night before the wave should be spent in the comfort of the Inn. Not only was camping much more efficient when grinding, but they had also explored the entirety of Castle Town surrounding areas. There was also the small problem that between gear, and provisions his bank was almost in the red

Before going to sleep Ryou immersed himself in his status window. He had risen to level nineteen, while Rishia had hit level twenty-one. He didn't remember what level Naofumi had the first time around, but he was almost sure he was at an higher level, still the other heroes were probably much higher, not that it would count for much in the great scheme of things.

Opening another window, he couldn't help but to appreciate the amount of weapons he had unlocked. A great portion of them were only stat boosters, but there were a few unique ones, especially since he had wasted a little money on buying random crap from Erhard to unlock more bows. That thought had hit him when he remembered how Naofumi had unlocked the _Air Strike Shield Skill_. Now he had a couple of new interesting abilities that while situational, could be a huge help.

Closing his status window, Ryou laid his head on the pillow and closed his eyes, thoughts of what the next day would bring filled his mind.

* * *

The next morning, they woke before dawn, since the wave was stated to hit at daybreak, and after getting ready they made their way to the central street. Everywhere they looked, there were soldiers, knights and adventurers.

Taking a seat near a fountain with Rishia following suit, Ryou checked his timer.

_Less then ten minutes huh__…_ Apprehension filled him, once more he couldn't stop the dreaded what-ifs, and doubts from rearing their ugly face in his mind. It was Rishia that broke his reverie.

"Fuee... R-Ryou-sama, will we be alright?" She asked in apprehension,

_Goddammit Ryou get a grip, you're suppose to be the leader here, and your acting like a little girl..._ He chastised mentally, before taking a deep breath.

"I'm not going to lie Rishia, this is going to be the first true trial for both of us, but I think we will be just fine." He reassured the girl, he couldn't afford self-doubt now, much less for it to be detectable by his party member.

However the girl still looked nervous so he tried a different approach.

"Rishia, what are rules number one, and two for our team?" He asked, and the girl gave a little jump before reciting them.

"R-Rule number one, nobody is a-allow to d-die, rule number two nobody gets l-left behind e-ever..." Ryou gave her a small smile. The rules that he had laid out a few days prior, were made more in an effort to reassure himself then anything else, however here in this moment, they actually served a purpose.

"Yup, so fight with those rules in mind, and I'll do the same. They, along with the progress we have made will get us through this." His smile widen when she gave a nod looking a little more lively.

Getting up he patted her shoulder, "Tell you what, after this I'll even throw in some food from my world in celebration. How is that?" He proposed, though mentally he had to wince. It was almost like those promises made before a big battle in fantasy, but like those it was the feeling behind it that counted.

"Food from Ryou-sama's world?! Does that mean that your cooking it?" She asked leaning forward, and her eyes widened after at the confirmation.

"It might not look like it, but I do know my way around a kitchen reasonably well you know!" He really didn't meant to brag about it, but his chest might have risen a few centimeters higher, in another life he had been praised for those skills by his friends.

_Well she's not Filo, but apparently mentioning new food serves as good motivation?_ Ryou watched in slight confusion has the girl who was clenching her fist, looked somewhere in the distance something similar to determination now present in her eyes.

He was about to break her of whatever thoughts she was having, when a loud hum reached his ears.

Looking upwards towards where he heard the sound, he watched the sky change from dark blue into a eerie red in a matter of seconds, and luminosity went back down to near night levels.

Before he could even begin to react, a golden light envelop him. A few seconds later the light disappeared leaving them in a clearing of some sorts. The hum returned, followed by a sound similar to glass breaking only thousands of times louder.

"Fueee! R-Ryou-sama, look at the sky!", Ryou once again turned his eyes upwards, his eyebrows disappeared into his hair, mouth opening in disbelief, he couldn't help but to utter.

"Holy shit…" The sky above, against all common sense, cracked, and from the hole a red cloud unfolded, covering the sky around the shattered space. What appeared like whirlpools formed along it, some blue, some green, lightning crossing between them. Ryou had never believed in religion but now he couldn't help but to compare what he was witnessing to a scene straight from hell.

Small black dots started falling from the whirlpool's like rain, but the Bow Hero knew they were something else entirely.

"Rishia! Let's get to higher ground, we will decide what to do from there!" The pair took off into the forest sprinting, even as hell fell from above.

* * *

_Next Chapter: Wave, and Ripples..._


	14. Wave and Ripples

**A/N -** Like it was promised, since I have a week off, I'll try to upload two chapters this week, so expect the next one sometime during Friday as usual. Unfortunately this is most likely the last week where I'll be able to release to chapters until the end of the year, since like I mention before my working hours all but doubled until then. Nonetheless expect the chapters to still come every Friday as normal unless I get hit by another car. And yes, that's something that actually happened two years ago around this time.

Now with those things out of the way, here we go... The Wave hits, Things change, and Rishia proves her stuff.

* * *

**Chapter ****14\. Wave of Calamity: Wave and Ripples**

_Small black dots started falling from the whirlpool's like rain, but the Bow Hero knew they were something else entirely._

_"Rishia! Let's get to higher ground, we will decide what to do from there!" The pair took off into the forest sprinting, even as hell fell from above._

Ryou continued sprinting through the forested area, the only sound reaching his ears were the light footsteps behind him, it appeared that all the inhabitants of the forest had left as if they sensed the calamity before it hit.. Trees were nothing but blurs until the Bow Hero spotted a slope, a very familiar slope that stopped above the canopy. Running towards it Ryou stopped right at the start of the incline, throwing a glance towards the left his suspicions were confirmed when he saw the charred remains of a tree on the ground.

_So this is where we were teleported__…_ The place where his first true battle was fought. Shaking his head of those thoughts Ryou continued upwards until he reach the peak, turning his eyes towards the direction of the wave. Far into the distance, the raindrops could now be identified as monsters. Rishia reach him at the same time a flare when off into the distance behind a large hill.

_If I'm not mistaken, that__'s the direction of Lute Village..._

_...Naofumi__…_

In canon the three heroes had went ahead and fought the boss - if he wanted to stay as close to the original story line as possible he should follow after them, however he had already made his choice. The others had commented how easy the boss had been, not only that, they also had full party's with them so even without Ryou they would be fine. There was also two other factors to take into account…

_I hate to have debts left unpaid, and for all the time we spend at each other__'s throats, I trust Naofumi to watch our backs far more than I trust the other's…_ It wasn't so much for himself, but for Rishia's sake. The green haired girl was now a member of his party and for all the progress she had made, one week was hardly enough to get ready for this kind of battle. He might be cuddling her a bit, but he couldn't help it, she was his first party member, and he had a responsibility to ensure they both made it to the end of this in one piece.

Turning around to face the girl who was biting her lip nervously even if her eyes were narrowed with focus, he laid down the plan. "Rishia that flare came from the direction of Lute Village, the knights will never make it in time so we are going to help them…" Ryou stated, and waited until she had nodded before continuing, "...Try not to engage too much in melee unless needed, you have your _MP potions_ so make good use of them, and stick close to me. Let's move!" Rishia confirmed she got the gist of it and they were off again in the direction of _Lute_ _Village_.

* * *

It wasn't until they had passed the top of the hill, and started their way down, _Lute Village_ in the distance that they came across opposition. Ryou, eyed their enemies, walking corpses stumbling towards him, moaning. Raising his bow Ryou shot a barrage of arrows towards their heads, thankfully they were slow so they had no time to dodge the volley, each arrow going through their heads, and the sheer attack power behind them blew off parts of their heads ending the immediate threat. Another group came stumbling from behind the trees, and he took aim again however before he could shoot, a blade of wind in the form of a half-moon came from his right bisecting the undead. Even cut in half their upper bodies still moved, very much like zombies in movies and games.

Rishia took out her rapier with grim look, and darted forward intent on finishing them off, but Ryou grabbed her by the shoulder halting the action, "Leave them. If we stop to kill every single one, we'll never make it to the village. From now on we are breaking through." With that they continued on their way.

Thankfully the _Inter-dimensional Zombies_ were not only slow but apparently quite weak, even the _Inter-dimensional Giant Zombies_ could be brought down in a couple of attacks, they did however more then make up for their weakness with sheer numbers. By the time the gates of the village came in sight, mostly destroyed, the pair had dispatched dozens and those were only the ones that stood directly in their way.

Now much more than a dozen of_ Inter-dimensional Zombies_ stood between the pair and the gate. Ryou gritted his teeth at the annoying opposition before turning to his partner who stopped by his side.

"Rishia, can you open us a path with magic?"

The girl who was surveying the horde before them in apprehension, jumped a little at being addressed, and her eyes met Ryou's, apprehension morphing into grim determination.

"Y-yes, I just need a moment R-Ryou-sama." She stuttered, before turning towards the front and raising her hands. Ryou took aim and shot at the ones closer to them, giving Rishia time to chant. A tingly sensation passed over his skin not all that different to what he would feel from a numb limb, a sensation he now could identify as magic being gathered.

"Faust Fire Blast!" Rishia exclaimed. A now familiar ball of condensed fire shot forward incinerating any undead in its path before reaching the center of the horde and exploding forming a spectacular dome of fire. The heat passed by them, and Ryou took off motioning Rishia to follow.

The path was littered with charred corpses some still twitching. With a leap, he passed the gate and was inside the village. A scream of panic brought his attention to the side of the gate, where a man was on his rear, cowering in fear. A Zombie stood menacingly above the man a spear in hand. With a gurgle, the zombie brought the spear back, with the purpose of ending the man's life. However before he could even begin the motion, a projectile cut through the air, leaving a faint streak of light obliterating the zombies head and part of his neck. The zombie's body dropped to the ground like a puppet whose strings had been cut.

Crouching next to the man Ryou, took note of the nasty gash below the knee and brought an _Health potion_ to the man's mouth. Gulping it down, a orange glow formed around the gash, before it closed leaving nothing but a few red stains.

Finally raising his head, the villager eyed him in disbelief and faint hope.

"Yuusha-sama! You also came?!" The man asked and Ryou nodded before helping the man up with a heave.

"From that statement, I take it that the Tate no Yuusha is also here?" Ryou inquired, and the man confirmed his suspicions.

"Fuee! Ryou-sama you knew Naofumi-sama would be here?" The question brought a small grin to Ryou's face.

"Yup, call it intuition. Come on let's go help that idiot." Ryou ordered, before moving towards the center of the village, the man now armed with a pitch fork trailing behind them.

Reaching the main square, Ryou took note of the amount of monsters in it. Searching around, head darting from side to side he finally found what he was looking for.

The green cape had been a dead give away. Naofumi ran like a madman with a swarm of bees or wasps far bigger than they should be right on his tail.

"Rapid Shot!", Ryou shouted, and his arrows did their job tearing through the bees. Naofumi came to a stop when he heard the shout, turning to face him eyes widening slightly, he then made his way towards them.

"Ryou..? What are you doing here?" Ryou smirked, eyeing the shield hero. There were few scratches on his cape along with some singed parts but no other visible damage.

"Saving your ass apparently…" Ryou trailed off, repeating the phrase that Naofumi had said to him, in what felt like a lifetime ago. The statement made the shield hero scowl for a few moments, before his face returned to a more passive look.

"I thought for sure you would have followed the others." The Shield Hero admitted, and a second later he dropped to the ground, an arrow passing centimeters from his head. Taking a look behind him Naofumi saw another zombie dropping dead, headless. A hand appeared before him, and he raised his head to look at the owner.

"Do we really have time to be playing twenty questions? Come on let's deal with this shit show…" Ryou honestly expected Naofumi to ignore his hand, but to his pleasant surprise the Shield Hero actually took it and with a heave he was back on his feet.

"By the way, where's Raphtalia?" Ryou asked, taking aim and releasing a few more arrows to the monsters closest to them.

"She's evacuating the villagers to the mine." Naofumi answered motioning towards the mountain behind the village with his head. Ryou grunted in acknowledgment, surveying the area around them, eyes stopping on what looked like a tool shed.

"Rishia! I know I said to stick close to me but can you go help Raphtalia? It'll go faster if both of you are helping the villagers!" Rishia agreed and took off with the man in towel towards the mountain opposite to the gate.

Ryou then darted towards the tool shed, before jumping and landing on the roof in a crouch.

"Naofumi! We need to start dwindling their numbers, can you round them up for me?" Ryou shouted, bow already in hand, shooting at any stranglers that came near the few villagers that were fighting to defend their home.

A mutter that sounded very much like, "who made you leader," reached his ears, yet the Shield Hero started running towards the closest batch of undead. The sight made the corner of Ryou's mouth rise a little, even in the middle of the chaos unfolding.

Naofumi, weaved around the undead, not as fast as Ryou could move, although he was using his skills with reckless abandon to protect anyone in danger of being hurt, and his shield defended from any attack that came from the front, Ryou took care of any creature that ventured too close to the shield hero, and the ones he thought could be troublesome.

Now with both heroes on the job, even the few villagers that had remained to fight started being evacuated, and he caught sight of Raphtalia, and Rishia, from the corner of his sight a couple of times, helping the townsfolk.

However even with the monsters dropping like flies, their numbers didn't appear to be dropping in the slightest, for every one that died, two others took its place. The Bow Hero eventually lost track of time, his fingers already going numb after shooting so many times.

_I don__'t remember there being anywhere close to this many, and is the wave suppose to be this long? Is my presence here, instead of with the others, making a difference in the time that's needed to take down the boss..?_ Ryou thought in slight apprehension, before hearing a buzzing sound. Turning around he immediately leaned back, a stinger big enough to puncture a hole through his head, passing by.

One hand lashing out, he grabbed the offender by its head, before slamming it down on the roof, the tiles cracking on impact, The stinger darted around blindly trying to impale him, an action that brought a glare out of the Bow Hero, before lifting his foot and stomping on its head. A small electric shock passed through his leg bringing out an hiss from Ryou, who banished the warning window that had pop up from the action.

More buzzing sounds reached him, and dropping low Ryou let the stingers pass over his head, before pulling on the string of his bow, and with a shout his skill took care of the remaining bees.

Rising back to his feet, he wiped both sweat, and purple blood that had splattered on his face. Taking note of the battlefield. He couldn't find Naofumi anywhere until he heard a bell, causing him to look upwards towards the tower, where he finally found the shield hero, torch in hand.

_Is he actually going to pull that again..?_ Ryou wondered, watching as Naofumi dropped the torch, and fire erupted from near his feet quickly racing down towards the zombies that were climbing the tower, also setting them ablaze.

"Change bow, Chain Bow!", With a shout, a new bow materialized, replacing his Great Wolf Fanged Bow. Now in his hand was a bow made completely of chains twisting around themselves, but strong enough that he couldn't bent them if he tried. Closing one eye in focus, he took aim at the roof above Naofumi's head.

"Chain Arrow!", At the command an arrow made completely out of dark grey steel flew from his bow, a chain attached to it. The arrow pierced the roof before unfolding releasing four hooks. Ryou then grabbed the chain and pulled, the now grappling hook coming back down unto the roof sinking the hooks in.

Pulling on the chain a few experimental times to make sure it was stable, Ryou then twisted the chain around his arm twice.

"Naofumi! Slide down!" Ryou shouted, and the Shield Hero, looked at the chain, before looking around the small tower for something he could use to slide, after a few seconds he stopped, and with a green shine his shield turned into a bundle of rope. With the new shield Naofumi made a makeshift rappel, and he slided down. Ryou planted his feet on the roof at the additional weight, but the chain held.

The Shield Hero's feet finally touched the roof before straightening himself, and looked towards the tower. Ryou let go of the chain causing it to disperse into blue particles that drifted in the wind, before changing his bow back into his offensive one.

The two heroes, stood side by side breathing slightly harder than normal, faces stern, as the flames consumed the tower. Finally a cracking sound was heard, and the structure tilted before crashing into the ground, kicking up dust, and embers into the air.

"The hell are those guys doing, the wave is still going…" Ryou, took a side glance at Naofumi, both his face and tone giving off the same frustration and unsureness that he felt at the moment.

"The wave is not going to stop until they take out the boss…" Ryou commented softly, then it morphed into a frown "...You would expect for all the bragging they do, this would already be over…" Although, he knew that partially the fault rested with him.

"Shit, at this rate the village will be nothing but ruins…" Naofumi muttered before jumping down to ground level. Ryou, watch the shield hero go forward to meet a new group of undead, that were once again starting to fill the square.

Closing his eyes for a small moment, Ryou, took a deep breath.

_Hopefully Raphtalia, and Rishia are almost done__… With them here we should be able to make some progress, I wanted to keep her away from this but at this rate its impossible…_

Opening his eyes, Ryou raised his bow once again, ready to start round two.

He took aim and went to shoot, when something made him launch the arrow sky high. A thunderous roar with different pitches echoed all around the village turning the blood in his veins into ice.

Looking behind he tried to find the cause, before another thunderous sound was heard. A crashing sound of something breaking apart over a tremendous force.

What little was left of Lute Village's gate literally exploded in shards of wood kicking a cloud of dust, and Ryou narrowed his eyes trying to see the culprit.

A big shadow appeared, slowly making its way out of the dust cloud while another roar echoed all through the village.

_Wait isn__'t that thing… Shit!_ It took only a moment to recognize the new menace, and when it did, Ryou couldn't really halt the dread that pooled in his stomach.

It was large, larger than the _Great Dire Wolf_ had been, purple fur covered its body. It stalked inside the village, crushing one zombie under its paw. Eight pairs of eyes surveyed the village, and another zombie, unlucky enough to cross its path was ripped apart by a lion like head. Another head, resembling a lizard of sorts with horns snarled, and the third one was unmistakably one of a goat. The tail, was waving above the body, like a scorpion's one, only instead of a sting there was a snake or a cobra replacing it.

_The boss of the wave__…_ Ryou realized looking apathetically at the creature, although the thoughts that were running through his head told a very different story. Why was it here? Were the others defeated? Was this his own fault? Had he, in his poor judgment doomed them all?

_If the others are dead we are done for__…_ If the waves grew exponentially more dangerous with the death of a hero, no miracle would save him or this world, they were already hard enough has it were.

Fists and teeth clenching, Ryou couldn't stop the surge of anger that came over him.

_After all the talk and bragging they did, they went and got themselves killed by the very first boss?! Are you serious?!_

Between anger and self loathing, Ryou hardly heard Naofumi shouting from under him on ground level.

"What the hell was that Ryou?!" Ryou eyes were locked on the creature, and he ignored the question. It was slowly making its way towards the square passing behind the houses, next to the tool shed he was on, ripping apart any unfortunate creature that got in its way.

After passing another house, Ryou finally had a good look at the beast, his eyes widening in realization after examining it better.

_Wait a minute__… It's brand new, there isn't a scratch on it…_ That observation actually gave him some hope, no matter how bad the other heroes were, they would have at least dealt some damage to it. But that brought about another question.

_So either they failed to locate the boss or there's two of them..._

The creature finally passed the last house and it's heads came into view, bringing out a sharp intake from Naofumi, however even though its eyes had shifted in their direction, the creature continued forward ignoring both of them. Naofumi just watched completely frozen as the creature passed by not even ten meters from them.

_It doesn't matter if its a second boss or not, we have to deal with it right here or the wave won't end..._

Deciding that now wasn't really the time to ponder on neither the mechanics behind the wave or what had cause this, Ryou crouched on the roof leveling his bow with the creature.

One step, then another, and another. It was more than halfway into the square when the snake tail turned around almost dancing from side to side. Forked tongue tasted the air a couple of time before the snake zeroed in on them.

The _Chimera_ gave a low rumbling, turning his massive body around slowly in their direction, and then another roar was launched directly at them.

"Shit it saw us!" Naofumi cursed before moving in a dash towards it, Ryou for his part just let go of the string, unleashing his favorite skill in quick succession.

"Rapid shot! Rapid Shot! Rapid shot!" A barrage of arrows flew, however instead of blowing holes like they did in the Zombies, the just punctured it, hardly producing any effects.

_Its nothing like the rest of the monsters! Its defense its too high for me to deal any true damage_! Ryou realized, watching has the creature took off galloping towards them. Following its path with his eyes, he saw what stood directly in the creature's path…

_Is he insane?! _

The Shield hero stood right in the creature's path, legs spread and feet planted on the ground, with his shield raised in front of him. Releasing another volley with his skill, the arrows embed themselves into the _Chimera__'s_ chest, and neck once again failing to even slow the creature down.

The creature almost came into smelling distance from Naofumi, when its hind legs bended, and lashed out against the ground sending it into the air. Ryou could only watch in utter disbelief, as the monster completely ignored Naofumi, and sailed over the Shield Hero.

Eyes fixed on the three gaping maws dripping with saliva, and full of very sharp teeth flying through the air in his direction, Ryou dived to the side and off the roof, vocalizing in a slightly higher pitch what he thought about the entire situation in general.

"Nope!"

Turning around in middle air, he observed as the creature obliterated the roof he had been standing, and crashed into the house behind it bringing the whole thing down on it.

Ryou hit the ground on his side, rolling. Standing up a moment later, he didn't even spared a single glance behind him, making a bee line towards Naofumi.

"Come on follow me!" Ryou urged the Shield Hero, before continuing his dash, coming to a stop on the other side of the still burning debris that were once the tower.

"What are we going to do?!" Naofumi hissed, now crouched next to Ryou.

"Listen, I think that thing has really bad vision, it didn't see either of us when it first entered the square even when we were both in plain sight. What saw us was the snake head…" Ryou started explaining, before rising to take a peek. He watched as the creature was slowly crawling out of the house that had fallen on top of it.

"How does that help us?! Even if three heads have bad eyesight, one can still see us just fine."

Crouching again, he turned to Naofumi before continuing with his reasoning "... Some snakes have the ability, to see or sense heat, it's how they hunt…" Naofumi's face only showed confusion, and just as Ryou was about to explain it further, The Shield Hero's head when up looking at the debris they were hiding behind.

"It can't see us if we blend in with other sources of heat." He muttered, eyes still on the flames.

"Not very well at least, we'll use that to confuse it… However we still need to figure out how to deal with it since my attacks aren't dealing that much damage." Ryou took another peek, observing as the creature now out of the debris, searched for them with the snake head dancing above it in an almost mesmerizing fashion.

"Don't you have any other skills or bows?" Naofumi inquired crouching again, after also observing their enemy.

Ryou shook his head, "No nothing that will work better then my rapid shot, and this is my highest attack focused bow." The only other attack he had was the poison arrow, and taking in consideration that Naofumi's _Chimera Viper Shield_ most likely came from this boss, its poison resistance was probably through the roof.

"Should we make a run for it then, using the fire has cover?" Naofumi inquired not seeing a way out, and Ryou once again shook his head.

"We can't, that thing is most likely one off, if not the boss from this wave, this will only end when its dead." Ryou finished bringing out a curse from the shield hero.

"Shit! What can we do then? I for sure can't kill it, and we will be here for a while with just your bow…" Naofumi had apparently reached the same conclusion he had.

"We have to wait for Raphtalia and Rishia, they should be about finished, then we will think of something... It will be better odds at least. " Taking another peek Ryou watched as the Chimera stalked around the square, low rumbling and hisses coming from its heads.

"It might be better odds, but Raphtalia can't deal anymore damage then you can, and with so little blind spots it will be hard for her to even land an attack." Naofumi countered.

"She might not, but Rishia can." He really didn't want the soft spoken girl near it, but at this moment his party member was their best bet. Naofumi however just look dubious at the proclamation.

"I don't really see how she can do any better than you or Raphtalia, she doesn't seem very dependable to me." That brought an hard look out of Ryou. While Rishia's general demeanor might not make for an intimidating sight, her strength even if unpolished was the real deal.

"She might not look like it, but Rishia as both the highest level out of all of us, and she also possesses the strongest destructive capabilities among any of us. Her biggest talent is magic after all, offensive magic." Ryou finished rising to a straight position.

"Well that sounds promising." Naofumi actually looked a little more hopeful, and maybe a little bit impressed.

"We'll see, either way we can't stay here forever. I'm going to try and take a few shots at it using the fire to confuse it, in the meantime try to think of some plan, or something among those lines…" With those instructions Ryou was off leaving the cover, and Naofumi behind.

Eyes leaving the _Chimera_ for a moment he dashed in the direction of a burning carriage. Thankfully there were a lot of things on fire around the square, so there was no shortage of places to hide. The snake head locked on to him for a few moments, and the _Chimera_ turned to face him but made no other movement. The reptile started dancing once again probably confused, since Ryou had reached his goal, the burning carriage now behind him.

Crouching on one knee, Ryou surveyed his surroundings quickly, with his heart beating a little bit quicker in his chest, and adrenaline running through his veins. Finding another piece of flaming debris a little further away, he had an escape plan. Taking careful aim at the creature, he locked on to it, and with a soft whisper Ryou released his arrows.

"Rapid Shot."

This time the arrows carefully aimed, hit the lion's head bringing a flinch along with a shriek out of the creature. One arrow had pierced its nose, the other just below it, almost going through the mouth and the last one hitting just below the eye.

The creature reared itself before galloping at full speed in Ryou's direction, who had expected it and put all his weight in one leg. Waiting until nearly the last moment, he dived to the side, and watched as the _Chimera_ rammed the burning carriage. The carriage was completely obliterated on impact, and the great beast started to back pedal almost tumbling before coming to a full stop. Once again raising its snake head into the air, the creature waved it around, before releasing a frustrated roar.

Ryou, who could almost feel the flames licking his back, observed as the creature released a roar still unaware of his position.

_Well now__…_ A grin formed itself in his face. He could most certainly use this hit, and run tactic.

Once again taking mental note of the closest source of fire, still crouching he repeated the process. This time the arrows hit the goat head, and the creature released a growl, before making a mad charge in his direction.

Ryou waited yet again until the last minute before jumping to the side, however the Bow Hero had underestimated the creature who instead of back pedaling like last time instead stuck its claws in the ground, kicking up dust everywhere. By the time he was on his feet the creature was few meters away, already facing in his direction.

"Shit!" He grunted dropping to the ground as a very sharp claw that could probably cut him into ribbons passed above him. Teeth clenched Ryou rolled sideways and raised himself on all fours. Eyes widening, he launched himself sideways again ending on his back, avoiding a gaping maw that had been aimed at his torso.

His chest heaved, before he was forced to roll once more, courtesy of the snake head that came from above crashing and embedding itself on the ground where he had stood previously.

Finally able to come to a standing position, he saw as the snake raised itself again in the air, the other three heads growling at him. Getting ready to put some distance between them, his next actions were brought to a halt when a blue light hit the monster on its side. Lightning danced across its body, as the creature released a deafening shriek, before falling on its side, twitching and growling.

"Fuee! Ryou-sama are you alright?" His partner asked the moment she reached him, face etched in worry, and eyes roaming every inch of his body looking for wounds.

"Yeah, I'm fine Rishia, nice timing by the way!" Ryou answered, giving her a smile and the thumbs up. Rishia's shoulders sagged slightly as she let out a breath of relief.

A growl, had their attention a moment later. Ryou turned towards the monster that was still twitching, but trying to get back up. The lightning bolt certainly courtesy of Rishia had stunned it, but it was clearly very much alive, although its side was now sporting a nasty burn.

"Come on let's regroup!" Ryou shouted urgency lacing his tone, extending one hand towards the girl, who wasted no time in grabbing it and both made a run for the downed tower.

Coming around the tower, Ryou saw Raphtalia fussing over a crouch Naofumi and made his way towards them.

"Is it death?" Naofumi asked, turning towards Ryou who shook his head.

"No, only stunned, although I found something thing is weak to magic, so our best bet is to keep it distracted while Rishia does her thing." Ryou explained, and Naofumi raised an eyebrow.

"Not a bad plan, but lets leave it as a second choice for now, because while you were playing Limbo with that thing, I came up with a plan of my own to take it down, and much faster I might add..." At the slight jab, Ryou threw an annoyed glance at the Shield Hero who was looking just a bit smug, before reining it in.

"Let's hear this plan of yours then."

"Before that, can you use fire magic?" Naofumi asked, motioning his head towards Rishia, who looked unsure but nodded anyways.

"Why fire magic in particular?" If anything Naofumi looked even more smug, oozing with confidence.

"Well, I happen to know this is a mining village. Quick question Ryou, what do miners use to mine?" He asked.

"Are we really playing twenty questions again, when there's a giant monster on the other side!" The Bow Hero hissed between clenched teeth, yet the Shield Hero continued to look expectantly at him, finally throwing his arms into the air Ryou gave up.

"I don't know?! Pickaxes!?" Naofumi shook his head, however Rishia came to the rescue.

"P-Pickaxes, depending on what they are mining, maybe magic or explosives?" She half answered, half asked uncertain. Ryou turned towards her, wheels turning in his head, before looking towards Naofumi who sidestepped, and pointed behind him with a malicious grin blooming on his face.

Ryou followed the finger with his eyes, and on the other side of the square, piled against a house were multiple barrels.

"Take a wild guess what's in those barrels?" Naofumi asked, however Ryou had already connected the dots, his mouth that was slightly open before, formed a very identical grin to the one on the Shield Hero's face.

_Naofumi__… You magnificent bastard…_ Apparently just like his canon counterpart, since he didn't have an offensive weapon, Naofumi still had the tendency to find outside of the box solutions.

"Fuee! R-Ryou-sama, N-Naofumi-sama, your b-both making scary faces!" Rishia exclaimed in an hushed tone, and Raphtalia only placed her hand in her forehead, wondering why their chosen heroes, looked far more like villains than anything else.

"Now we just need to get it near the barrels, without any of us being caught up in the blast." Naofumi added, crossing his arms in thought.

Ryou grabbed his chin with one hand, "Well lets pool resources, and see what we can come up with…"

* * *

The square was mostly silent, besides the occasional sound of fire crackling, and the heavy thumps of the _Chimera_ stalking around it, trying to find its prey.

"Hey over here!" Naofumi shouted waving a hand in the air, coming from behind the tower.

The snake hissed, although it was drowned by the roar, finally finding its prey the _Chimera_ charged.

Taking a page from Ryou's book, instead of defending, Naofumi dodged behind the tower. The _Chimera_ passed where he had been standing a moment later, paws sliding on the ground, before coming to an halt. The snake head locked on Naofumi who was now running at full speed, and without the cover of fire he was easy to identify.

Naofumi took another look, confirming he was being followed before urging his legs to go faster. Passing in front of another house the Shield Hero's feet went over a chain on the ground, the end embedded in the wall.

* * *

On the other end of the chain, stood both Ryou, and Raphtalia slightly glowing with an yellow shine around them, the mark of a defensive buff. Ryou had the chain circling around his arm armor, his other arm grabbing Raphtalia who had the end of the chain loosely tied around her mid-section below Ryou's arm.

_This is gonna hurt__…_ Taking a breath he faced the Demi-human that he was holding in what some might consider a rather intimate position, however the situation didn't allow the two to even consider such a thing.

"Ready?" He asked Raphtalia, who nodded with look of pure seriousness and determination on her face. Ryou took another look towards the charging beast, waiting a moment before shouting.

"Now!" And together they pulled through clenched teeth, the chain coming straight hovering a little more then a meter above the ground. The _Chimera_ didn't even see the obstacle, and barreled into it.

Ryou almost screamed both at the pain, and the pressure on his arm, grabbing on with every inch of strength he had both at the chain, and at Raphtalia who had her feet planted on the ground also pulling the chain. One last powerful pull sent them flying into the ground, however the deed had been done.

The creature tumbled, rolling on the ground coming to a stop right next to the barrels, and a moment later a flash of white swallowed it.

* * *

The moment Naofumi had passed the chain, Rishia had started chanting her most powerful fire spell, completely focused on the task with closed eyes.

"As source of thy power, I order thee. Decipher the laws of Nature, and scorch the land before me!" Flames gathered in front of her hand, condensing into a shining orange ball of fire.

Opening her eyes, she watched has the monster came tumbling towards the barrels. and released the destructive projectile with a mighty shout, the complete opposite of what one would connect with her normal meek attitude.

"Faust Flame Blast!" The ball of destruction shot forwards towards the barrels leaving a trail of flames under it.

Ryou only saw the ball going for the barrels, before covering both his and Raphtalia's head.

The projectile hit the barrels, and the entire village shook with the enormous explosion that took place.

* * *

_Next Chapter : Aftermath_


	15. Aftermath

**A/N -** Well here it is.

Where Ryou once again loses is temper in more ways than one, and at the end of the day the Legendary Heroes are only just human...

* * *

**Chapter 15. Wave of Calamity: Aftermath**

Dust was everywhere… With his ears still ringing and coughing Ryou could hardly see anything in front of him, besides pieces of burning debris that had fallen.

Finally raising himself, he took a look at the demi-human besides him. Raphtalia also came to a standing position looking around, hands still covering her ears with tears at the corner of her eyes.

"You okay?" She didn't looked hurt in any way, however she continued to look from side to side as if she hadn't heard him.

With a frown he grabbed her shoulder turning her in his direction.

"Raphtalia, are you okay?" She tilted her head looking confused, and then she answered.

"Can't hear you Ryou-sama!" She shouted right in his face and he immediately let her go startled with wide eyes, before it registered that she was still covering her ears.

_Right she has heightened hearing sense, that explosion was probably murder to her ears__…_

"Raphtalia!" Over the ringing Ryou heard the voice of his fellow Hero who was making his way towards them. Ryou frowned taking a look around trying to find is own partner.

"Rishia!" Ryou shouted over the crackling fire. She had been the one furthest away from the explosion, and yet…

"Fuee… H-Here Ryou-s-sama…" Ryou turned around and there she was, face smudged with ash and dust, probably looking just like his, but overall she was okay if out of breath.

"You alright?" She seemed about to drop, and on cue just as she was about to answer him, her legs buckled. Thankfully her body didn't meet the ground, Ryou had been there to catch her, even if an hiss came out at the movement.

_It's kind of ironic that the archer is always screwing up his arm.._. It wasn't broken or anything, just really sensitive to harsh movements.

"I'm j-just really tired." Rishia muttered against his chest. Ryou couldn't blame her, not only had this been her first real battle, she had also been throwing magic around everywhere.

_Well I tried to keep my expectations real, but she really when above and beyond__…_

He surveyed the area where the _Chimera_, was supposed to be, and he found the creature or what was left of it, burned almost recognition. Two of it's legs were missing and one of the heads - the lizard one was half carbonized.

Turning his head away from the unpleasant sight, Ryou eyes found themselves looking at the top of the green haired girl's head still resting against him. A small smile formed in his face, she wasn't making any attempt to move from her current position, although there were definitely better resting places around.

"Come on, you can rest for a little while." Ryou urge her, and although she released a sound of disagreement much to Ryou's amusement, she let herself be guided.

Even if the Bow Hero still had some fight in him, they could take a breather for a couple of minutes, the _Chimera_ had scared everything in the village away.

It was when they had almost reach what was left of a wall that Ryou felt a now familiar prickling sensation on the back of his neck.

_Magic..!_ Eyes turning upwards he saw multiple fireballs like mortars making their way into the sky, converging on a single spot, before exploding and causing fire to rain down on the village

"Get down!" Ryou screamed before pushing Rishia against the wall, covering her with his body.

Countless fireballs hit the village, setting most of what was still standing on fire. Ryou gritted his teeth as a few fireballs hit him in the back, a burning sensation blooming were they hit, even if the damage was negligible, mostly thanks to his new armor.

_Motherfuckers, even with us here?!_ Finally the rain of fire stopped, and he heard laughter from somewhere, sending his already dwindling patience flying completely off the window.

He raised himself, quite intent on giving those little shits a piece of mind, before a whimper reached his ears. Looking down Rishia was leaning half on the ground half against the wall clutching her arm, face in a grimace. In her arm behind partly burned cloth a nasty burn was visible. The worst of glares possible developed in Ryou's face. It was one thing to target Naofumi, he wouldn't even feel any damage, even if it was wrong. It was another thing altogether to hurt someone in his party, and very much his responsibility.

She released her arm, before spreading her palm over the wound, an action that Ryou stopped by grabbing her wrist completely ignoring the commotion behind him for the moment.

"Stop, you used to much magic already…", Grabbing a potion from his inventory he pried it open, and brought it to the girl's mouth. Rishia only gave a slight twitch at the flavor, an orange glow covered her arm for a few moments before disappearing leaving only flawless skin behind.

"W-what was that magic?" Rishia questioned, and now that she was healed Ryou raised himself snarling.

"A mistake, someone's about to pay for!" Turning around to look at the commotion he saw Raphtalia, her sword locked with some other knight, and behind him another armored man with a mustache, looking far to pleased with himself, a smug smile on his face.

_Fucking bastard!_ The smile on the Knight's face made the Bow Hero see red, and he marched in their direction.

"Stop it Raphtalia its not worth it." Naofumi ordered before the situation turned worse, however his voice hardly reached Ryou.

The smug knight, turned to look at Ryou who was approaching him in stride, not noticing the hero's clenched fists, or the hostility oozing from his body. The other knight however got the message, because he backed away.

"Yuusha-sama, my apologies we were unaware you, Gah!" Wham… the sound of flesh being hit echoed around them. The knight's head snapped back from the blow and his body followed suit, he hit the ground on his back, blood leaking from the corner of his mouth.

There was a surprised yell from behind him, but Ryou ignored it.

"Fuee! Ryou-sama!"

Taking another step towards the downed knight, Ryou lowered himself before grabbing the man's collar and pulling him right into his snarling face.

"Listen here you piece of shit, that stunt you just pulled not only did it hit both me, and my party member, but caused more damage then the wave itself…" The man's face went completely pale, eyes wide in fear at the fury etched in the hero's face.

Ryou shook the man's collar before continuing."... a knight's duty is to protect the people, a knight that has forsaken that duty, as no right wielding a sword!" He finished with a pointed glare towards the other knight that had locked swords with Raphtalia. The man looked down with a conflicted expression.

Ryou returned his glare to the offender once more. "If you pull another stunt like this ever again, the only weapon you will be wielding for the rest of your life will be a toilet brush, and remember that unlike the Tate no Yuusha, I can make good on my threats, got it?" The man nodded frantically.

Ryou released the man letting him fall back on the ground when a loud hum echoed around them. Turning his head upwards he saw the sky returning to normal. Both the cloud, and the redness faded like they were never there to begin with, signaling the end of the wave.

_Guess those idiots finally wrapped things up, but it's not over yet__…_ Ryou rationalized, before clapping his hands loudly twice to get everyone's attention.

"Okay listen up! Everyone here who isn't a brain dead idiot, form squads, and go scout the village and its surroundings! Just because the wave is over doesn't mean the monsters are gone!" The knights, and guards just looked at each other with uncertainty.

Sending a glare he raised his voice, "Are all of you volunteering for a lifetime of toilet duty too? Get going!" That got them moving, hastily forming groups, and setting out towards the four corners of the village. Moving the glare to the downed knight, he shoved the man with his foot.

"Get out there, and do your goddamn job asshole!" The leader of the knights, crawled away a few meters before rising himself stumbling, and going on its way.

Watching dispassionately as the knights went to act on his orders, Ryou took a deep breath, before turning around.

"What?" He asked, his voice coming out slightly more aggressive than intended. Both Raphtalia and Rishia appeared scandalized at what they had witnessed, Naofumi looked slightly surprised, though his lips were turned slightly upwards, almost forming a smirk.

"Ryou-sama, you shouldn't threaten people, even if its justified, much less resort to violence like that." Ryou's jaw drooped at the lecture.

"Fuee.. S-She's right Ryou-sama, h-hitting a knight like that i-is…" Rishia trailed off, trying to come up with something to describe it but failing.

Ryou was actually trying to rationalize how was he the one in the wrong in all of this.

"Okay… First of all Raphtalia, you went at him with the intent of cutting him down! How is that any different?" He asked, and she met his stare before responding.

"But you are a Hero! You shouldn't act like that! Besides its fine if it's me, I'm just…" She looked down at that. Her reasoning left a little to be desired in his mind but he understood her feelings.

"A demi-human?" Ryou asked softly and she nodded, her eyes still on the ground.

With a sigh Ryou rubbed his forehead, "And how is that any different from me? I'm also just human…" She looked up at that, meeting his eyes once more.

"But you are one of the Legendary Heroes!" There was something in her tone, like that fact answered everything.

"Then let me ask you… What exactly are the Legendary heroes?" Tilting her head at the question, she put her hand on the handle of her sword before replying.

"The Legendary Heroes, are the great heroes who have and will fight to defend this world from the calamities." She explained like she was reading it from a textbook, and it was probably the case. Ryou finally understood where she was coming from, and apparently so had Naofumi who made its way towards them.

"Raphtalia, your view about the Heroes is inherently wrong, even more so if your comparing us to the ones of legend." Naofumi commented stopping right in front of the girl.

Ryou found himself agreeing with his fellow hero, noticing that Rishia had also come closer. "Naofumi's right. This goes for the both of you. Your expectations of us are based on legends from the past. However your forgetting that we, are not those heroes... Before this we were only normal humans, far less remarkable then the both of you..." Ryou explained and Naofumi picked up after him.

"That's right, I never asked for any of this, and given the chance I would gladly go back to my world in a instant,.." The poor demi-human girl looked stricken hearing that, Ryou did felt a little pity at the look but continued nonetheless.

"Raphtalia... Rishia... Your making us out to be saints, but at the end of the day we are only human, and we come with all the faults that humans have. I for one am full of faults, but you know what? I'm fine with that, I don't want to be a saint, and I never proclaimed myself to be a hero, I'm just some guy with an overpowered bow trying to survive." Those words finally seemed to have some impact in them at least. At the end of the day that had been his goal from the start, to just survive. Going back to his own world might be impossible, but even if that was the case he wanted to make the most out of this second chance at life, however he had never asked to be pulled into a war, or to shoulder the burdens of being a hero.

Ryou crossed his arms looking at his partner since there was still another thing to acknowledge.

"And second of all, Rishia that bastard had it coming, he launched the attack fully knowing that there were people here, and in case you have forgotten you go hurt by the attack." Ryou pointed to her arm, where while the skin showed no damage, her vest was still burned.

Rishia shook her head. "B-But it wasn't that serious, and to get angry for the sake of someone like me-" She trailed off eyes on the ground, and Ryou felt himself getting angry but for different reasons.

"What's this 'for someone like me' crap? Aren't you a member of my party? Aren't you my companion?" Ryou asked grabbing her shoulders, both the action and his serious tone forcing the girl to look at him.

"The moment you joined my party you became my responsibility, and as such, anyone that tries to screw with my party members as to answer to me, no matter who it is. Got it?" Although she looked like she was going to cry there was a smile on her face as she nodded

Letting her go the bow hero finally relented, "Although I'll acknowledge I could have probably handled that better…"

A snort came from Naofumi, "Well I was surprised I though you only hit defenseless people, although I won't deny I took some pleasure in seeing that." His face definitely showed as much. Raphtalia threw an exasperated look in her master's direction but held her tongue.

"Defenseless my ass…." Ryou muttered before raising his voice "…And I'm glad my moment of violence fueled your amusement… You really have a nasty personality don't you Naofumi…" Throwing a sideways glance at the shield hero he saw him scoff.

"I'm not the one who almost knocked out the captain of the Knights, and then threaten to demote him to toilet duty for life, was I?" The question was laced with a bit of sarcasm.

Touche… With a shrug Ryou answered.

"I only commented that you had a nasty personality, I don't remember saying mine was any better though." Raphtalia introduced her palm to her forehead at the interaction, Rishia just smiled, and Naofumi had the best deadpan expression he had ever seen in a person.

* * *

After the guards had cleaned up the village and the surrounding area, most had left for the castle. The villagers had returned to the village, or what was left of it.

Although they had been victorious even with the sudden appearance of what he could only guess was a second wave boss, the mood around Lute Village was a somber one.

The village was mostly wasted, what little of the buildings that had survived the initial invasion, and the Chimera, had been burned to the ground thanks to the mages that came with the knights.

Not only that, but their victory had come with another price. Three miners, and a teenager - those were the casualties. If one was to take in consideration the area that had been affected by the wave, those would be pretty good numbers. But Ryou couldn't stop the feeling of empathy when he saw the old woman crying at the shallow grave that had been dug for her grandson.

There was no way they could have save those poor souls, they had perish even before Naofumi had reached the village.

For all his talk about only caring about survival, now looking at the desolation before him along with the somber, and grieving mood that hover over Lute village, Ryou couldn't help but to feel a small sense of failure even if it hadn't been his responsibility. Dusk had settled in, and it was hard to believe they had been fighting for almost a full day.

"Ryou-sama, I finished healing the villagers who needed it…" Rishia, said, coming from behind. She at least look a little better now, especially after resting,

"I see, good work." Sending her a small, grateful smile, before reaching into his inventory, and pulling a MP potion.

"Here drink it, at least it will help recover your magic." Rishia, took the potion with far more enthusiasm then she did with the health potion, apparently MP potions actually tasted pretty good in comparison.

"Hey Ryou, what the hell was that?" Naofumi asked coming up in their direction, Raphtalia trailing behind. The girl's eyes had a little red on them, signs of crying, but appeared in good spirits, so there was probably nothing to worry about.

"What was what?" With a raised eyebrow, Ryou asked the Shield Hero who pointed in his direction before explaining.

"That thing you did, you just pulled a potion out of your status window…", Ryou released a small, "ah" sound.

_Right, as far as I remember, there wasn__'t an inventory in the original story…_ Ryou remembered. Of course the Shield Hero would be interest in it.

"It's the Inventory, like the one in RPG's, don't you have one?" Ryou asked, and Naofumi opened his own status windows searching high and low before frowning.

"No, there's nothing like that here…" Ryou peered at the Shield Hero status window, and sure enough, the menu for the inventory was missing.

_Weird__… Is it unique to me..?_ Ryou considered also frowning. That made no sense, after all most abilities were available to every hero as long as they believed them to be real. That had been the conclusion that Naofumi from the original story had reached.

_That's right! Shit, I completely forgot about the other upgrade systems..!_ Ryou almost slapped himself, with everything that had been going on he had completely forgotten about it, and made mental note to interrogate Motoyasu and Ren about them.

_Though with how they acted with Naofumi, I doubt they will cough up the information easily even if it is me__…_

Looking at Naofumi again, who appeared to be searching the help menu, he realized the problem. Looking down he picked a random piece of rubble from the ground.

"Naofumi, here try putting this inside your status window." Ryou handed the piece of rubble to Naofumi who looked at it with curiosity, before grabbing, and shoving it through the status window.

"It doesn't work…" He commented impatiently, rotating the piece of rubble in his hand.

"Try it again, but imagine that you have like…" He thought of the best way to explain his portable inventory, "...Like a cube with a white void inside, beyond the status window, like your own portable dimension or something like that…" Ryou finished sounding slightly apologetic at the end. That was the best way he could put it.

The Shield Hero closed his eyes, probably trying to picture what Ryou had explained, before extending his hand into the window. This time instead of going through, it disappeared into the status window, much to Raphtalia's horror.

"Naofumi-sama your hand!" She screeched, making the mentioned hero open his eyes. Immediately after the menu for the inventory appeared, along with a small window, from the help menu, explaining its usage.

"It worked!" Ignoring the Demi-human, Naofumi focused on the new interface that appeared.

Turning around, and motioning Rishia to follow, Ryou threw a few final words at his fellow hero. "All the information you need should be on the help menu now, and the rest you can figure it out for yourself."

Ryou took a few steps with Rishia trailing behind before Naofumi's voice cut through, "Ryou.. Why are you…" He stopped, face looking conflicted, and Ryou turned around to hear what he had to say.

_What's up with him now..?_

"Tate no Yuusha-sama, and Yumi no Yuusha-sama." Both Ryou, and Naofumi turned their heads to find a great part of Lute villagers lined up, behind the village leader.

"We thank you both, from the bottom of our hearts, without your intervention we would all certainly perished." The people were now bowing to them, the gratefulness in their voice seemed truly sincere.

"Thank your lucky stars, or whatever god you worship, not me…" Naofumi stated turning around, and Ryou couldn't help but to agree with those words. He had come to Lute village, but his main reason for it was not to save it, mostly he had come because he owed Naofumi one, and because it had been the most rational move. Not only did he trusted Naofumi more then he trusted the others, both Naofumi, and Raphtalia flavored melee combat, on the other hand he and Rishia favored ranged style combat, they simply complimented themselves.

_Honestly saving the village mostly came as a consequence of it, it's nothing to be thankful about, at least as far as I__'m concerned…_

"No, both of you saved this village, that's the truth…" Another village with a bandanna or cloth tied to his head stated.

Ryou shook his head stepping forward, deciding to vocalize his own thoughts on the matter, "Don't thank me either, the only reason I came here, was because I owed this one." Ryou stated pointing his thumb behind him towards Naofumi, "Had it not been for that, I would have most likely joined the other heroes in battle. Saving the village only happen as a happy coincidence nothing more." Taking a peek at the corner of his vision, he saw Rishia with a small frown on her face.

If people started to thank him, than that would make his already enormous burden even bigger. Was it cowardly? Yes…, But if people started to see him as a hero even more then they already did, they would push the responsibility of keeping them alive unto him even more, and Ryou wanted no part in that. He would only be responsible for the lives of those in his party, that would be it.

"Can you truly say that when you shared your healing items with us, protect us with your arrows, and sent that young woman to help evacuate our families." Ryou took a step back, even if he clenched his teeth and balled his fist.

_Who the hell would want to see innocent people die in front of them, that has nothing to do with saving the village or being a hero, it's what anyone would do. _He thought, though the words failed him. And he couldn't exactly express that the reason he had ordered Rishia to help evacuate the villagers, had been because that took her out of the front line. For all the progress she had done, and although she had played a major part in fighting the boss, she still made mistakes, one week was hardly enough time to get her mentally ready to fight the wave, the evacuation had come as very convenient excuse nothing more.

"We will never forget your actions here." Ryou looked sideways. With another bow they went on their way,

Feeling a pull on his sleeve he turned to find Rishia, looking at him, still with the same small frown. "R-Ryou-sama, why are you so against accepting your actions here? Even if your initial intention wasn't to save the village, you still h-helped save it… "

He turned his head again, looking at the ground," That's because…" Ryou trailed off, not knowing what to say. How could he explain to her that he didn't want to shoulder that responsibility. That he didn't want people shoving anymore stuff on him, especially with everything that was still to come.

"That's because..?" Rishia had maneuvered herself, so she was peering into his face. Even if Ryou was making an effort to avoid looking at her, he still saw those lime colored eyes, watching him curiously, waiting for an answer.

"That's because…" He trailed off again, feeling both his face, and ears get warmer, although if it was embarrassment or anger he didn't know.

"Bah! Stop asking hard questions right after the wave Rishia!" Finally reaching his limits, Ryou threw his arms into the air, and turned around before marching away

"I'm going to see if those incompetents didn't screw up on finishing the monsters!"

Rishia for her part watched the hero walk away, her frown turning into an expression slight distress,"Fuee! Did I asked something hard? I didn't meant too!"

A hand fell on her shoulder, and she turned to find Raphtalia shaking her head even if there was a small smile on her face. "Don't worry Rishia-chan , I have to deal with one of those too. I think it's just a man's thing, or maybe its a hero thing..?" Raphtalia, seemed to ponder on that for a moment before engaging the girl in a conversation.

_What__'s with this invisible division, I'm sensing here…_ Thought Naofumi watching the scene from further away, a blank look on his face before turning to look in the direction of his fellow hero. His eyes caught Ryou's back, and he couldn't help the conflict that emerged from inside.

_Why Ryou..?_

* * *

Taking another deep breath, Ryou kicked a stone in his path.

The pressure, the desolation, and the weariness of fighting the entire day had reach the boiling point. He had blown up at his partner and he felt like shit about it too.

_Great way to be a dick Ryou, and to show your different than Itsuki__…_ He chastised mentally, kicking another rock.

Rishia had been nothing but supportive of him, and tried her hardest to live up to his expectations. Expectations she had all but surpassed.

Sure he didn't like to be put on the spot without any idea how to respond, and adding to that came the fact that she had been intruding very much into his own personal space. But that still didn't excuse his actions…

He would also never admit that having her looking at him like that, had also made him quite embarrassed, especially since Rishia was quite attractive, not in the same way as Malty. Rishia possessed a more down to earth beauty.

Shaking his head at the direction his thoughts had taken him, he had no time to be entertaining such things with what was coming. Ryou surveyed his limited field of view. Night was almost upon them, so light was becoming a scarce resource. It was time to return to the village.

The knights had at least done a good job cleaning up. After an hour Ryou had only come across four _Inter-Dimensional Wasps_, that had put up almost no fight at all.

Absorbing the wasp stinger had unlocked yet another bow with an interesting passive ability.

**[Inter-Dimensional Wasp Bow - +5 Agility, Projectile Speed Bonus (Small)]**

The ability projectile speed apparently increased the speed of his arrows, making them faster.

Interestingly enough the restrictions on experience gain were removed during the wave, meaning that he had actually increased his own level by four even fighting alongside Naofumi.

Coming back to the village he had been 'ambushed' by a knight, that had invited him to a celebration feast to commemorate their victory against the wave the following day.

Honestly Ryou had hardly any interest in the celebration, the only reason he would be going, would be the reward and the opportunity to hound Motoyasu, and Ren for their upgrade system. He needed them, he needed every advantage he could get. He also had to look for a third party member eventually, one that could focus in melee.

Confirming that he would indeed be present in the festivities, Ryou made his way towards one of the villagers asking for where his partner was.

Along the way he had caught sight of Raphtalia in the distance near a tent. The Demi-human girl also saw him, especially with the look she had shot him, hands going for her hips. It was the look that any kid would recognize, the disappointed look a mother would throw when her child when he did something stupid. Ryou would also never admit that his own shoulders had dropped just a fraction at the sight, although he was starting to see how Raphtalia had handle Naofumi so easily. She was developing into an headstrong young woman, one that was not afraid to call bullshit when she saw it.

They had lay down some provisionally tents for the heroes own usage. Approaching the one meant for him, Ryou spotted Rishia sitting on an improvised bench made from a trunk, alone. Her figure illuminated by the embers of the campfire in front of her. Coming closer he saw she looked lost in her own world, with a bowl with some sort of stew in her hand.

She didn't notice him, even when Ryou came into touching distance. Peering at her very much like she had done a couple of hours ago he addressed her.

"Do you have room for one more?" The Bow Hero asked softly, but she had still been startled, her bowl almost flying from her hand if not for his own reflexes, and the fact that he had been expecting it.

"R-Ryou-sama, I'm sorry I didn't see you…" She exclaimed, grabbing the bowl tightly, and giving him space to sit down.

Ryou waved off her worries, and took her moving to the side as a sign to sit down. "Don't worry about it, although you were pretty deep in thought…" She look down at her bowl, her eyes fixed on the still slightly steaming content.

"J-just thinking about the wave…" Ryou hummed at that, his eyes focusing on the fire.

The wood crackled sending small embers into the air.

"You know Rishia… Before coming here I was nothing special, just some guy going through life without any direction…" Ryou begun, eyes settled in the fire, but his mind far, far way. "... Had a crappy job that let me live reasonably well, a few hobbies that were my sole motivation besides my little sister, but she lived with my uncle and aunt, so I didn't saw her that much…"

Rishia had raised her eyes to look at the young man next to her, listening with full attention.

"Never did anything remotely important in my life, and was content to keep it that way. Well until a accident happen, and I was summoned here…" Ryou stated, raising his eyes to look at the the sky, watching the stars. They were far more visible in this world, but he couldn't identify any of the constellations present.

"A-an accident?" Rishia inquired her face turning into a worried frown.

A small humorless smile appeared in his face, "Yeah, got hit by a truck I think… Imagine a metal carriage, but far larger and coming much faster…" He could actually see the rest of the galaxy, or maybe it was just an arm. He wondered if maybe it was also called milk way, or maybe it didn't even had a name.

"Fuee… T-that probably h-hurt a lot…" Rishia commented softly, bringing out a small chuckle from Ryou that left her slightly confused.

"Not really, I didn't feel anything… Although I'm pretty sure, I died in that moment…" His eyes came to rest upon the fire again, there was something melancholic about it, although he had never gone camping before.

"Died?!" It came out like a shriek, and she had almost bolted upright. Ryou took notice of her reaction before nodding.

"Yup, at the speed It appeared to be coming back then, I'm pretty sure surviving would be almost impossible… Not sure if the legendary bow, saved me right before I passed away, or revived me…" Now more calm, she clapped her hands together, an action he now knew meant nothing in particular, just a small habit of hers.

"It a-almost sound like a m-miracle… B-but its a l-legendary weapon so i-its possible…" Her eyes also looked into the fire, and Ryou noted she was definitely sitting closer now.

"After that, I woke up in an empty black void, couldn't feel a thing, only me and my thoughts." Another deep breath, another crackle in the fire, " Maybe I was there five minutes, maybe five months… Honestly I couldn't tell you…What I can tell you Rishia, its that when I was there, alone, I looked back at everything I did in my life, and I hated what I saw…" Ryou's eyes narrowed slightly at the less than pleasant memories.

"The what ifs, the regrets, every bad decision came to me in that moment, and I couldn't help but to think what a waste it had been…" Taking a peek at the girl, she was sending him a look he couldn't describe. Was it sadness? Pity? Empathy? He really couldn't pinpoint the emotions on it.

"How lonely, and painful it must have been, Ryou-sama.." She whispered, and he nodded as an afterthought. It had been lonely, the realization that he had been truly alone. It had also been a painful realization that he had wasted his life doing nothing.

"But you know... At that moment I wished I had a second chance, that I could do it all over again." He chuckle again, and faced the green haired girl, taking in her features. Now bathed in the dim light, her hair almost had the same color as her eyes.

"I got my second chance, although I would never in a million years think it would be as a Legendary Hero. This second chance came with a price, if I wanted to live I would have to fight tooth and nail for it…" the girl looked down at hearing his words, but he called her name, and she met his gaze once more.

"Rishia... What I want to say is, that I'm sorry that I acted like that back there, and for blowing up like that, you didn't deserve it at all… But I never asked for this fight, I never asked for any of these responsibilities, nor do I want them. I know this might influence how you view me… I know it must sound selfish but I just want to survive, and get to live my life, whether it's here in this world, or back in my own…" Ryou finished with a grimace. He never wanted to destroy her image of the heroes, but he just wasn't one, no matter what other people said about it.

Rishia for her part, shook her head, and brought her hands to her chest, a small smile in her face. "Ryou-sama… Even if everyone disagrees that you are a hero… Even if you Ryou-sama, don't think of yourself as one, I will still think of you has one, that won't change." Her voice was hardly a whisper, yet it carried the strength of her belief in it.

Ryou's eyebrows disappeared behind his hair, mouth dropping open. He had just told her he didn't want to be a hero, that he didn't want the responsibility that would come with it. That at the end of the day he was both selfish and a coward, and yet…

"How can you say that?! I have never done anything heroic, and I just basically told you that my desire is to live, that's it! How can you still call me a hero after that?!" He hadn't intent on his voice to come out has strong has it had.

Rishia didn't even flinch at the outburst, and continue with her small smile before nodding. "Yes I will still call you a Hero, because Ryou-sama is not selfish, if anything he his a kind person. He could have left me, and my family when things got hard, yet he still came to save me. Me… A complete stranger, not only that, but you also made everything better in the village, and saved another without asking for anything in return. Sure Ryou-sama as his faults. I probably added to the pressure, by putting my own selfish, and unreasonable expectations on top of you and I apologize for that... But even with those faults you're actions are not those of a selfish person… Those are the actions of a strong and kind person, one that I can't help but to admire and follow…" She finished still with the same small smile present, her eyes shining in the fire.

Ryou couldn't respond to that, completely lost for words at the heartfelt speech. Nobody had ever said something like that to him. Back then he had sprung into action, leaving Rishia to her fate hadn't even crossed his mind in the slightest. His reasoning back then had been that although he didn't knew her, he knew of her. She wasn't a picture on his screen anymore, she was a living human being, one that needed his help, and he had went to help her.

Looking at her in a completely new light, Ryou took a seat, and lowered his head. Then a chuckle came out a little strangled.

"That's really unfair Rishia, I can't win against a speech like that… How am I suppose to answer to that…" He muttered, and she shook her head shifting closer to him, and turned to look at the fire her smile still present. Both continued to look at the small bonfire, with small smiles on their faces in silence, but there was no need for anymore words, their feelings had been conveyed.

…_Come what may, I'll follow you…_

…_Thank you, Rishia..._

* * *

_Next Chapter - Pyromaniacs and God_


	16. Pyromaniac's and God

**A/N -** So here is the chapter, unfortunately or fortunately it had to be released a day sooner since tomorrow I'm going to be busy and would have no time to edit it, so I did everything today.

That said here we go, were Ryou compares his partner with a long lost animal, gets new toys, finds new hobbies, and receives an ominous warning.

* * *

**Chapter 16. Wave of Calamity: Pyromaniac****'s and God...**

_…Come what may, I'll follow you…_

_…Thank you, Rishia..._

The first thing Ryou noticed after waking up, was that it was too bright even with his eyes closed, the second was that it was way too hot.

One eye opening, he focused it on the ceiling, a cream color fabric that did little to filter the sun light.

Opening his second eye, everything from the day before came to him. From the wave, to talking with everyone, and his own confession to Rishia.

Rising the upper part of his body he stretch his arms over his head, feeling everything in his body creak in protest, whether it was from the fight or from sleeping on the floor he didn't know.

What he did know for certain was that he definitely felt a little lighter, talking with Rishia about what had happen to him definitely helped.

Turning his head to the side he saw the girl in question, still very much asleep. Her green hair no longer in braids, covered most of the backpack they were using for pillows along with her face. He took a minute to admire how long her hair was. Green was obviously not a normal hair color at all, especially that tone. In his old world if people colored their hair green, it would normally be a more vivacious color. Rishia's hair color was more along the lines of a pine tree, yet for an uncommon hair color it looked strangely normal.

Ryou did also wonder however, between the hair all over her face, and the sleeping bag covering her up to what looked like her nose, how the hell could she sleep when he could hardly breathe with how hot it was inside.

_Maybe her hair disperses heat..?_ He wondered before releasing a snort, because the first thing that had popped in his head was a stegosaurus of all things. His mind went to very weird places when he was sleepy, such as comparing his party member to a dinosaur...

_Although..._ The stegosaurus while herbivores, and mostly peaceful, were not harmless in anyway shape or form.

_An apt description..._ He allowed, while passing a hand over his forehead to clean the sweat accumulating there. After a small session of twister he made it to the entrance on the other side without awaking his friend. Ryou decided against waking the girl, she was not a hero after all, and that made a difference in the time it took to recover, and Rishia more than deserved her rest.

Stepping outside Ryou squinted his eyes at the sudden brightness, apparently the tent filtered the sunlight more than he thought. It was already close to mid-day judging from the sun's position so that meant he had slept for over twelve hours. Then again he had been awake before dawn, and spent most of the previous day fighting.

Taking a look behind him he wondered if leaving Rishia would be prudent, before snorting in amusement at his own thoughts. No matter how defenseless she looked, she was strong, he had to remind himself that this was a girl that could shoot rockets from her hands, nobody here would be stupid enough to mess with her.

* * *

After walking through Lute Village, Ryou could see that the mood of the villagers was definitely better now, more smiles and far more energy in there bodies as they went around doing various tasks.

He did caught sight of Naofumi, and Ryou couldn't help but to lean against a wall, watching a guard pestering the Shield Hero, and a small chuckle erupted from his mouth at the look of annoyance he had on his face.

"Ryou-sama." He turned to look at the familiar voice, just as Raphtalia reached his side caring a basket of bread.

"Yo." He greeted with a wave of his hand, and the demi-human took a look around.

"Where's Rishia-chan, Ryou-sama?" She asked confused.

"Sleeping like a rock most likely…" Raphtalia nodded accepting it, then she remembered something an sent him a pointed look, not a bad one, but not really friendly either, however he interrupted her knowing exactly what was on her mind.

"Don't give me that… I already apologized, I was the one in the wrong, I know…" He grumbled in annoyance, that look she sent him made him feel like he was in trouble, even though he was much older then her.

_If this keeps going, its not just Naofumi, but all of us will be dancing to her tune__…_

The demi human pulled the basket against her chest, before releasing an huff."You and Naofumi-sama, your like long lost brothers sometimes…"

"Like hell we are!", He snarled before pointing a finger in her direction. "And what about you?! You used to be so small and cute! I miss those days. Now a days while your still cute your turning into one of those middle age house wives that do nothing but harp at people." He threw out, although it was mostly in jest.

"M-Middle-age w-wife!" It was pretty adorable to see her splutter and try do deny it, her face gaining a pink hue and her tail ruffling.

With a chuckle he decided to stop her before she had a nervous breakdown,"I'm just messing with you. Honestly I'm glad that you turned this way, you look much more lively then before…" He confessed. Her eyes widened, before looking slightly down a small smile blooming in her face.

"It's all thanks to Naofumi-sama…"

Releasing a sigh Ryou, couldn't really disagree with it, "Guess that even under that nasty personality of his, he has a heart…"

"Naofumi-sama isn't a bad person, even those rumors are not…" She jumped to defend her master but Ryou raised his hand to stop her.

"I know that from first hand experience you don't have to defend him in front of me of all people Raphtalia. After all neither of us would be having this conversation if that wasn't the case…" He explained, and her eyes widened once more at the memory, before smiling in his direction.

Ryou turned around crossing his arms, and closing his eyes briefly before adding, "Though If you ever mention this to him, I will forever deny it until my last breath…"

That reward him with a small laugh, and a shake of her head, "Honestly you two…"

Then Ryou's expression went a little more serious, as another far memory reached the forefront of his mind, one that had been plaguing him since the wave ended, "Raphtalia… Listen, even if he doesn't come out and says it, your important to him, I know that much about Naofumi. After everything that happened, your the person he trusts the most, or rather the only one he trusts in this world… Going forward things will be even harder, before they get better… So keep watching over him... He will need you more then ever during those times, especially since that idiot attracts more trouble to himself then a flame attracts moths."

The demi-human looked confused at his statement even if her face gained a little more color, but nodded with determination nonetheless, "I'm Naofumi-sama's sword, no matter where he goes, or what he as to face I will follow him, and face it by his side!"

That brought a smile to Ryou's face who nodded back, before turning to walk away since Naofumi had finished his talk with the guard, and was coming in their direction, "Make sure you do… There's only so much I can do on my end…" The last part came out as a whisper, but the words still reached her ears.

_I don__'t know if it will happened like it did originally, nor am I sure if I should intervene in that or not…_On one side things had ended in an higher note in canon with Naofumi getting much closer to Raphtalia, and mellowing out a bit, on the other hand the Shield Hero had went through a very shitty moment, and another painfully experience.

_I guess I can only wait and see, maybe by some miracle Aultcray, and Malty will grow a conscience and not pull anything this time__…_ Though even he knew that was just wishful thinking on his part.

* * *

It took a while to find the village leader, but he finally found the man in the main square, where they had fought most of the wave. Ryou's eyes locked on where a giant pile of monsters were being piled by some villagers. He definitely had to absorb some of those, the Chimera most of all. As a boss monster the beast would definitely unlock interesting new bows.

_But right now food comes first__…_ Ryou decided, and on cue his stomach protested at the lack of sustenance inside.

Making his way towards the man, Ryou raised a hand in greeting. "Good morning."

The man had a small smile on his face, and returned the greeting with a shallow bow. "Good morning Yuusha-sama. Is there something you require?"

Ryou rubbed his head a little,"Yeah I kinda know this is bad timing, but is there anything to eat around here?"

The old leader seemed amused if anything else, with the corner of his lip rising even higher, "There most certainly is, most of our food was stored in underground basements, we have already cleaned most of the rubble and have access to it. Besides his highness is sending a convoy with all matters of resources, food included."

_How gracious of him__… Must be in a good mood with the victory over the wave…_ No matter how antagonistic his thoughts about Aultcray seemed, Ryou had already come to the conclusion that the man was definitely not a people's sympathizer.

"Well show me what you got, I'm in dire need of breakfast…" The old man motioned for Ryou to follow him, and they were off.

* * *

"Fuee! R-Ryou-sama, these are delicious!" After that she proceeded to take another bite of the fluffy but strange dish.

Ryou just chuckled at how excited she was, especially at something simple like pancakes, before putting another piece in his mouth flavoring the familiar taste.

After following the village leader, Ryou had find out that most of the stock, were dairy products, so after a little thinking he decided to do something different but easy.

Henceforth came pancakes, Rishia had awoken to the smell, curious about what he had been making. After a little pestering, Ryou had explained the basics behind it, and the mage of the party had been waiting with anticipation.

Now seeing her reaction, Ryou realized that he had made a good call, though it was hard to find someone who truly disliked pancakes.

"You can pour honey on them if you want, I like mine simple though…" Her eyes seemed to sparkle at that, before reaching for the bottle, and pouring. Ryou's eyes almost popped out of his face at the ungodly amount of honey she had put on top of the pancakes.

_Jesus, I have a sweet tooth, but that's pushing it to the limit..!_ He thought in disbelief, eyeing the glittering layer of honey over her pancakes. She put down the bottle, and began to devour the fluffy, and more than drowned on honey breakfast . Her face turned into one of pure bliss as she ate them, one hand rising to her cheek, while she munched voicing her approval.

"Fuee! This is too good, I'm in heaven!", She murmured. Shaking his head in both amusement at her reaction, Ryou ate the last piece before setting his plate down.

"After this we are going to the village square, I want to see what kind of bows I can unlock from the monsters of the wave, and them we are going back to Castle Town." She finished munching, before putting her hand in front of her mouth tilting her head slightly

"I thought we were staying here for a few days..." Shaking his head, Ryou laid his chin on his hand before replying.

"By me we would, but we were invited for a celebration at the Castle for beating the wave, and unfortunately I have something to discuss with the other heroes not to mention the reward" He finished with a sigh, and raised an eyebrow when a small giggle was heard.

"What?" She shook her head, still laughing lightly before replying.

"You really don't want to go, do you Ryou-sama?"

Releasing an huff, his eyes dropped slightly before responding. "No, I really don't, but I have to.I really don't want to deal with stuck up nobles, and the other Heroes."

"R-Ryou-sama, I-I'm a noble too, and Naofumi-sama isn't that bad, e-even if he is a little s-scary…" She protested, prompting a snort from the Bow wielder.

"Your are one of the few exceptions Rishia, also your right Naofumi isn't that bad... That asshole is even worse, and the only thing scary about him is that nightmare inducing ugly mug of his."

"R-Ryou-sama!" She scold, or tried to at least., but her lip twitched and covered her mouth again with her hand, face turning around to hide her silent laugh, even if her shoulders gave her away.

_So prim and proper, but not so pure if you can laugh at these jokes are you Rishia__…_

* * *

After breakfast, and cleaning up Ryou made his way towards the square once again, intent on gathering the materials.

Starting with the zombies he quickly absorbed the rotting meat, covering his nose with his armor, the stench almost unbearable. The window of his bows tree appearing with it.

**[Inter-Dimensional Zombie Bow - Equipment Bonus - +3 Attack, Decay Resistance bonus (small)]**

A quick look at the help menu, reward him with the explanation of what Decay Resistance was. It apparently helped conserve perishable items, on him and on his inventory.

_That__'s cool and useful this away I can keep food with me longer, this will definitely help on longer trips…_ Ryou concluded. The attack bonus was also a good addition, even if the all around stats paled in comparison with his Great Fanged Bow.

Moving towards one of the giant zombies, he quickly repeated the process.

**[Inter-Dimensional Giant Zombie Bow - Equipment Bonus - +5 Attack, Decay Resistance bonus (Medium)]**

Ryou decided to compared the two, and although the stats were definitely better, they were still inferior to his main weapon. Only good for the mastery bonus, not that he had been expecting anything else.

The main event came from the Chimera that two men were in the process of breaking apart.

_Good thing there__'s no children to see this…_ Ryou added in his mind, and although he had gotten use to it, the sight still made his stomach feel a little queasy. The villagers had separated the four heads of the Chimera, one that hardly counted as a head anymore. The rest of the monster was currently being break apart into small pieces, apparently the meat was both good to feed the animals and would fetch a pretty penny on the market.

Taking a look at the heads, he was in the process of choosing two to absorb, the other two he would leave for Naofumi, it would only be fair after all.

The process of choosing which ones had been hard. He already knew what absorbing the snake head would amount Lion's head had been the main one, and that probably made it the strongest. However the lizard one, or what was left of it, might also have been that of a dragon, and that had sealed the deal. The second one had been tougher but he eventually chose the goat out of sheer curiosity

Picking up the mutilated and burned head he placed it on his bow watching it shine with a soft yellow glow, and with a now very familiar sensation the head was absorbed, and a new window appeared.

**[Chimeric Dragon Bow - Equipment Bonus - +10 Attack, Fire Resistance bonus (Small), Fire Shot - Special Effect - Fire Damage Bonus (Small)]**

_Jackpot..!_ Ryou felt his lip twitching upwards at the sight. Not only did his new bow grant him a new skill, it actually empowered that same skill, not even counting the rest of the bonuses.

_Take a look at those juicy stats__…_ The tab displayed a pretty big increase if equipped, on all of his stats even defense.

The new skill was self explanatory for anyone that had played video games, however Ryou would definitely try it out soon. There was nothing better then adding a little fire to things if needed. Besides with the bonus towards fire attacks, he wondered how strong the skill was.

Finally grabbing the goat head, Ryou repeated the process, curiosity on his mind to what would come from such an item.

**[Chimeric Goat Bow - Equipment Bonus - +5 Attack, +5 Defense, Knock-back Resistance Bonus (Small), Ramming Shot - Special Effect - Knock-back Effect Bonus (Small)]**

He couldn't really help the small laugh that escaped him, already having a pretty good idea of what this 'Ramming Shot' would be about. The Stats were mostly on par with the other Chimeric Bow. However if the skill did what he thought it did, it would definitely be a good addition to his arsenal, he needed some variety on his skills.

Finishing absorbing some other parts of the Chimera, Ryou decided to go back to Rishia. His partner had asked to check on the wounded once more before leaving. While there were no critical patients among them, Ryou couldn't deny the request. She had been the one to heal them in the first place, and probably wanted to make sure every one of them was alright, she was that kind of person after all.

The trip to Castle Town had been mostly peaceful...

_ Mostly…_

* * *

On the way, the Bow Hero decided to hunt for a few targets. He needed to check out how strong his new bows were, and how the two new skills worked. So him and Rishia had taken a small scenic route. Unfortunately, the forest was mostly deserted, the monsters had left the area no doubt because of the wave. Even monsters on this world, knew better then to stay around and taking into consideration what he saw during the wave - how the Chimera had not differentiate between them and the rest of the monsters it was reasonable of them to leave.

It had taken him almost three hours to find a target. Between two trees, half hidden in a bush, was a sole _Usapil_.

At the sight, Ryou narrowed his eyes, before calling upon his new bow.

"Chimeric Dragon Bow." He whispered softly, unfortunately even that had alerted the monster, no doubt his height sense of hearing helping detect them. With a screech the rabbit like creature jumped in their direction.

"Flame Shot!" Ryou shouted, and watched as an arrow made completely of flames came from the bow. He could feel the heat, almost uncomfortable, but it didn't burn. The arrow head was actually much larger than his normal arrows, releasing small streams of flames from it. Taking aim, in an instant the target was lock down and Ryou released the arrow.

With a swooshing sound, the arrow went flying hitting the small critter in the air, piercing it, and continuing into the distance leaving only a carbonized corpse behind. After a few moments the sound of a roaring flame echoed through the trees.

He grinned at the sight. The skill certainly packed a punch, and the bow was pretty cool looking too. Almost completely green covered with what looked like scales, along with small white protrusions similar to bone spikes.

"Fuee.. Ryou-sama..." The green haired girl called out, and Ryou released a small grunt in acknowledgment while most of his attention was still on his new bow.

"T-The fire is s-spreading, and its s-summer..." There was a worried tone in her voice, that made Ryou turn his attention towards the fire in question.

"So it is…" He commented, watching from the corner of his vision as the flames slowly spread towards the trees.

"I-I'm going to put it out b-before it gets any worse!" Her voice now held a little more than worry, and she dashed in it's direction already reciting the incantation for a water spell.

"Please do…" Ryou murmured going back to check on his new magnificent bow.

It took a few minutes, and more than a half dozen water spells to extinguish the flames, but Rishia managed to advert disaster.

* * *

"Oh look there's another Rabbit thing!" Ryou commented at the sight, excited to use his other skill.

With a worried look, Rishia decided to intervene, "Ryou-sama please don't start anymore forest fires…"

Turning around to look at the girl, Ryou narrowed his eyes slightly before responding, "What do you take me for? There's only one pyromaniac in this party, and it certainly isn't me…"

"Fuee!" Rishia looked positively scandalized at the insinuation, but before she could say anything, Ryou interrupted her.

"Don't you 'Fuee' me, I know for a fact that you have an entire arsenal of offensive spells from all elements, yet the one you use the most just happens to be a fire one… Curious isn't it?" He stated in a matter of fact tone.

The green girl just gaped before trying to explain herself, "T-That's because it's my most powerful spell..! Ryou-sama!" She finished shouting finger pointing towards something behind the Bow Hero.

A screech came from behind him, and Ryou side stepped the attack, before lashing out with his hand grabbing the _Usapil_ by its ears.

"You shut up, this as nothing to do with you!" He hissed, giving a few shakes to the squirming creature, before returning his attention to the green haired girl.

"So your most powerful spell just happens to be a fire one, what a coincidence..." Ryou commented sarcastically.

Eyes shifting between the Hero and the monster, Rishia was confused on where to focus her attention, "R-Ryou-sama the Usapil!"

Narrowing his eyes just a little bit more, Ryou continued, "Don't change the subject Rishia."

That broke Rishia out of her indecision and she also ignored the Usapil while answering. "I-It is a coincidence! I-It just happened to be like that! I'm not a p-pyromaniac!"

"Yes you are! Even if that was a coincidence you can't hide the fact that every time you use your Faust Flame Blast, you have a smile on your face! Face it, out of the two of us you are the one who loves fire and explosions the most!" Ryou finished, using a finger from the hand that was grabbing the creature's ears, to point at the girl. The poor critter, still struggling to get out of his grip.

"Fueee! I don't smile I'm sure of it! A-A-And I c-certainly am not the one who loves e-explosions the most! L-Let's not forget the fact that the moment N-Naofumi-sama mentioned explosives, you were t-the one smiling!" The girl shot back at him, and he had to stop the smile from forming, maintaining a stern face, then shrugging nonchalantly Ryou was quick to explain himself.

" You will be hard pressed to find a man that doesn't enjoy the prospect of big explosions. You on the other hand enjoy all types of explosions, especially if they involve lots of fire."

Her face turned slightly red, and she stomped on the ground, then what came out of her mouth was almost but not quite a shout , "Fueee! I do not!"

Ryou simply waved the Usapil in her direction as if waving her off, "Yeah, yeah, all I'm hearing is pure denial…" Before turning around, and launching the creature into the distance.

Since he had his back towards her, Rishia completely missed the small smile that appeared on his face.

_This is definitely becoming a thing..._ Ryou vowed,deciding that this would be his new hobby - Messing with Rishia. It would probably help the normally soft-spoken girl develop a back bone, and it was also pretty funny to boot.

_Besides she needs to learn when to stand her ground, especially with what is coming..._ He rationalized, getting ready to deal with the monster.

"Chimeric Goat Bow!" His second new bow, materialized in his hand. This one seemed mostly covered in dark brown leather, and where once were the wing ornaments at the end, now were curved horns.

"Ramming Shot!" A pure white arrow materialized from the jewel, and Ryou took aim at the Usapil who was once again making his way towards him, no doubt plotting its revenge.

_...Swoshhh__…_

_...Bammm!_

Ryou took a second to understand what he had just witnessed. before his face twitched and a strange pitch sound escaped him. It didn't take long for him to lose it.

"Hahahahahahahhahah!" Doubling over he slap his knee in mirth, as roars of laughter escaped him.

In his old world, this would most likely be considered animal cruelty, but he couldn't help himself. The arrow failed to deliver any damage, what it did however, was create a shock wave that launched the rabbit like creature into the air at insane speeds past the trees, before disappearing in the sky, like villains in cartoons. The sight had been so hilarious that he had lost it completely.

"R-Ryou-sama, it really isn't that funny..." Rishia reproached, and Ryou turned towards her again, tears in his eyes.

"W-what are you talking about? That was hilarious!" Ryou explained, gasping for breath.

She sent him a disapproving look, one that made Ryou finally get a hold of himself..

"Fine, ruin my fun will you…" He murmured, low enough that she couldn't hear him.

* * *

"There's another one over there." Ryou stated, pointing into the distance.

"Ryou-sama, It hasn't noticed us yet, we can keep…" The girl tried to reason, stopping when it proved useless.

_...Swoshhh__…_

_...Bammm!_

"Hahahahhahahahha, Oh gods! Hahahahahaha!" Ryou broke again, at the sight even when an indignant sound came from behind him.

"R-Ryou-sama!"

* * *

_Mostly…_

Passing the gates, Ryou walked with a very pleased smile on his face, at his side came Rishia, who while not looking at him, had a slightly disappointed pout in her face, one that he was very content to ignore

So what if he had sent two more _Usapils_, and three _Balloons_ flying into the stratosphere, the sight had been hilarious every single time. It had been the most fun he had since unlocking his rapid shot. It just didn't get old.

Fun, and games aside he decided the first thing they were doing was getting a room on the Inn, he was in desperate need of a bath, a sentiment that Rishia echoed quite vocally. After that they would hit the Church of the Dragon Hourglass, he wanted the timer for the next wave, so he could start making plans.

Unfortunately for him, news of their victory over the wave had already reach every corner of the town, and if before everyone's eyes were on him, now they almost sparkled with admiration something that turned his mood slightly sour.

Thankfully the bath made wonders both for his body, and mood again. Nothing like hot water on his sore body, and feeling clean. Coming towards the bath mirror he did noted that his hair was getting a little too long. He intended on cutting it before being involuntarily summoned to Melromarc. It was reaching the base of his neck, and on the front it was slowly covering his eyes.

_Not sure if I trust Rishia with a pair of scissors, but no doubt she will be much better than me at it…_

Pondering on it for a moment he concluded that his hair could wait, before getting dressed, and setting on towards the church, after informing his partner to go meet him at the entrance when she was ready. Even if she was not familiar with Castle Town, the Church of the Dragon Hourglass was impossible to miss.

* * *

The Dragon Hourglass, was both an amazing and eerie sight. The colossal hourglass was made completely of gold, the metal twisting around it until it ended in two sculptures of dragons. The eerie part was the red gems that spun in the middle, they looked like eyes that were peering into his very being.

Coming closer, the jewel in his wrist bracelet activated, sending a beam of light into the hourglass, making it shine in a golden color.

_So it truly is different from the original story, the Shadow Maid was not mistaken__…_ Ryou thought, his eyes narrowing at the timer. It displayed the time until the next wave. Ninety three days, and eleven hours. Three months.

Ryou couldn't understand why it existed such a colossal difference. The time given to them had all but doubled if he wasn't mistaken. That along with the other subtle differences made his head spin with possibilities.

"Yuusha-sama, you still have not yet absorbed the sand from the hourglass have you?" The sister that had guide him to the hourglass asked.

"Huh?" His face etched in confusion. Absorbing the sand of the hourglass? He couldn't remember such a thing at all. Seeing his face the sister smiled lightly, before moving towards a table, and picking up something. Ryou watched has she came back with a golden flask in hand. The golden flask, was etched with red jewels, just like the hourglass.

She extended the flask towards him, and Ryou picked it up with curiosity.

"Inside is the sand of the hourglass, the other heroes have already pour it into their weapons, From what they said it granted them a useful ability." She finished, and Ryou opened the flask pouring sand into his hand. It felt and looked like regular sand, yet Ryou could bet it was anything but.

_Useful ability, I don__'t remember Naofumi having such a thing, but then again I doubt that the Church of the Three Heroes would hand over such a thing to him… _Before clenching his hand into a fist, and pouring the sand over the jewel.

**[Dragon Era Bow - Equipment Bonus - Dimensional Piercing Shot - Requirement - Level Fifty]**

_The fuck? That sounds bad ass..!_ His eyebrows rose as he read the description of the skill. The Dimensional Piercing Arrow, apparently let him open a portal between locations to teleport, he could only have three designated locations, like the teleport ability he had since the beginning. However the cooldown of the skill was only one hour, against the two full days as it was for his ability.

_This will make traveling a lot more convenient especially with such a small cooldown, although it will take a while before I can use it.._. Ryou thought with a smile, however the smile disappeared just has fast when he noticed that the sister was now bowing low. A shiver passed along his body, and a voice interrupted any further thinking.

"Well, well, the Yumi no Yuusha-sama, coming to visit our esteemed church… What an honor." The voice was deceptively friendly, however, Ryou could only think one thing.

_Ohh fuck no__…_ Turning around his suspicions were confirmed, and he came face to face with one of the two individuals he absolutely did not want to meet. Before him was the pope of the Church of the Three Heroes.

Swallowing Ryou took in the man that would undeniably become his enemy in the future, if there were any doubts before he had none now, every inch of his body was telling him to run, along with the hairs of his arm rising.

"I heard how you valiantly defended Lute Village, even putting an end to the reign of tyranny in the Northern Territories! It warms my heart that you take your job as a Yuusha seriously." The man's smile turned a little wider, and Ryou could only offer a small nod in acknowledgment, mind running at miles per hour on how to escape from the man's presence.

A moment that seemed like an eternity passed between them, before the smile turned into a frown, and the pope lowered his head slightly. "However I must offer my apologies in the name of the Church to you Yuusha-sama."

Ryou's eyes narrow at that, and he forced his fist to relax. "What do you mean?" Small miracle he had maintained his voice steady

"You see, Lord Gentlewood was a firm believer of our great church. Or at least we thought he was since we had no idea of the evil he was practicing… Though have no worries! God as already cast his judgment upon him!" The final part was added with a small smile, and Ryou felt his body go rigid.

_Shit! That guy was a member of the church!?_ Ryou cursed mentally in slight panic. This had been exactly what he had hoped to avoid, and instead he had put himself right under the pope's eyes and exposed himself.

"I see… That's good news, now if you allow me I must get ready for the celebration!" His voice had come out slightly shaky, but Ryou needed to get out of the church, and away from the man, and fast!

"Of course, don't let me keep you. Go enjoy the celebration, you certainly earn it!" The pope allowed, and with a nod, Ryou made his retreat forcing himself to walk at a normal pace, but wanting to exit has fast as he reasonably could without making it look even more suspicious.

He was almost at the door when the voice of the Pope reached him once more. " And remember Yuusha-sama, God is always watching, and as you know now he will always punish anyone who fails to play their role accordingly… Always..." He had turned to look at the Pope but at the moment the man had said the last part, his friendly smile had turned into something else… Still a smile but there was no warm in it. Ryou could feel a coldness washing over his body, before turning towards the door, and crossing the boundary.

_That was a warning, a very clear one no doubt about it..._ Ryou thought with dread. His intervention on the north had caused him to become a target, or at least someone to be weary about in the eyes of the pope, and his cult...

* * *

_Next Chapter: Heroes Clash_


	17. Heroes Clash

**A/N - **Okay I am back, and once again had to release the chapter sooner then I wanted, but life is annoying sometimes.

That aside I'm going to ramble a little bit because there are a couple of things people have been talking about, and although I try to answer all reviews its probably to talk about it here.

So first thing first. Strengthening Methods, or Upgraded Systems, or any other name you want to call them, they are coming in the near future, no I have not forgotten about it.

Now there have been a few grips about Ryou forgetting them, but lets take a moment to analyse this, the total sum of Ryou's knowledge is not based on the web novel, where the strengthening methods are truly explored, in the manga there is exactly one chapter talking about it, and then a few mentions, that's it. The one system that is showed is the copy system and that one he remembers. So why didn't he used it? Because with being summoned to a new world, getting his bearings, and everything happening he forgot. Now I understand that some people just might want to facepalm at this, but my character isn't in any way shape or form perfect, and he is never going to be. Ryou is going to screw up, and in some cases in a really big way, and forget about some of the small details, that can have pretty big consequences, but that's exactly the type of character I want to write.

Second point, power scaling and progression... Sigh... I'm going to get this out of the way, Ryou is not going to be blowing up mountains anytime soon, he will get stronger and it will show, but I'm keeping it reasonable so if someone expects him to one-shot everything them I'm sorry its going to happen for a long time. As for Archer training Ryou will practice, and he will definitely train in other ways in a more formal way but right now the only thing going for him is his passive ability, that's basically a water-down version of Itsuki's ability, the problem is that it doesn't account anything that happens after the arrows are fired, so anything fast enough can and it will dodge, and worse anything fast enough can get in the way henceforth friendly-fire. That along with a mother-hen makes so for a while he will be forced to engage in short to medium range.

Third point, crafting, blending, compounding etc... It will also come in the near future, for the record he does have to ability to make potions, but there was no need to touch it at the time, the explanation is there.

Fourth and last point... Party Members... So Ryou's full party as already been decided for the most part since the begging and its actually reasonably big, that said, fully expect to see changes to all the rosters of all Heroes not just him and Naofumi, some small that will not impact much, and some really big that will change a lot of stuff.

End of Rambling, so on with the chapter...

Things change, and yet still stay the same, Ryou gets pissed for people dissing his partner, and Rishia roasts the first princess of Melromarc with a couple of innocent words...

* * *

**Chapter 17. Wave of Calamity: ****Heroes Clash**

_That was a warning, a very clear one no doubt about it... Ryou thought with dread. His intervention on the north had caused him to become a target, or at least someone to be weary about in the eyes of the pope, and his cult..._

The moment he was out of the church, Ryou increased his pace intent on getting as far away as he could from the building.

Gentlewood being a member of the Church of the Three Heroes was something that had never crossed his mind, and the Pope's words were most likely to be taken literally. Gentlewood was dead, either at the hands of the Church or at Aultcray's. How much information they had gotten from him was an unknown variable at this point, but at the very least he could conclude that the Pope knew he was much more informed than the other Heroes, and far harder to manipulate.

The last message had been a warning. He was keeping an eye on him so Ryou had to be more careful with his movements.

Coming into the main street he almost jumped when a hand grabbed his sleeve.

"Fuee… Ryou-sama, please wait!" Calming himself at the familiar voice, Ryou turned around watching Rishia who had place her hands on her knees trying to catch her breath.

"You okay there?" The girl pouted slightly, before righting herself.

"I should be asking you that Ryou-sama! I have been calling out to you for a while now!" Ryou winced, he was really out of it if he didn't heard her.

_Get a grip Ryou losing it will just make things worse, besides the Pope only moved after the third wave, when Naofumi became too much to handle__…_ He rationalized, before addressing his party member.

"Sorry Rishia just thinking about stuff, come on let's get to the Castle, the sooner we get this over with the better." He grumbled, celebrations and parties were not his thing.

On his way towards the castle he made small talk with Rishia yet his thoughts still wandered slightly. Ryou was really starting to see the appeal of traveling into the wild like Naofumi had done. He couldn't stop the shiver of excitement at the thought, there was an entire new world out there to explore. Not only would that make them stronger, but it would also make it harder for the church to keep track of him. He already had an idea of where to go, after he got his affairs sorted out.

"Hey, Rishia do you want to go visit your father?" Rishia just turned her head to look at him, blinking a couple of times looking surprised.

"Fuee… Go back to visit father?" Ryou nodded at the question, and the girl also bobbed her head a smile on her face.

"I would like that! Even if only to weeks have pass, I already have so much to tell!" Ryou held in his laugh at her reaction even if it was the truth. Since the girl joined his party two weeks ago a lot had already happen.

"But there's another reason for Ryou-sama to go back isn't there?" Rishia interjected, prompting a small embarrassed smile from the Bow Hero, once again even if it had been only a small amount of time, the girl was getting better at reading him.

"Well it is one of the reasons, just not the main one. It's good for you to spend time with your family while you can, but the main reason is that I hardly had time to explore the area. Back then I was just trying to solve the situation as fast as possible, since there was little time before the wave." He explained. There were probably a lot of different monsters around the area, and he hardly saw any of them, Rishia's Village was as good of a starting point to get stronger as any.

"Hmm, there are s-some interesting, and dangerous places around like the Northern Cavern but it's also home to some dangerous monsters..." She stopped when the Bow Hero snorted.

"…W-What?" Ryou took a side glance before asking what was on his mind.

"This 'Northern Cavern', does it go all the way down to the center of the planet?" He asked in amusement, much to the girl's confusion.

"N-No… At l-least I don't think so, why?" He waved a hand in her direction.

"Nothing, nothing just remembered a story from my world. You were saying?" She looked at him confused for a moment before continuing.

"...T-The Northern Cavern was also a M-Mithril mine, but after the miners mined most of the initial areas they stop going there, since it became d-dangerous do delve any d-deeper." Rishia explained, and Ryou hummed in thought. Such a place was bound to be, not only a good hunting grounds, but a nice way to get some money.

"Is Mithril valuable?" Ryou questioned, and the girl nodded before launching into a more in-deep explanation.

"Yes, especially here in Melromarc, since there are almost no m-mines they have to export it, and even on other places mining it, is normally dangerous, because for some reason the mines always attract s-stronger then normal m-monsters." That made Ryou think about it more deeply. While there was the possibility of danger at the very least it was something worth checking, Mithril had always been a staple in most RPG's. The metal was also supposedly very light and durable, perfect for ranged characters, so that was also another plus.

"Well sounds like a plan to me, seems we have are next course of action!" Ryou finished giving a thumbs up.

* * *

The celebration had begun on a room that Ryou was not familiar with, and that begged the question on how many ball rooms were there in the castle.

The room had a stairway that led to a balcony, where the King and his adviser spent most of their time along with other people, no doubt the side of nobility that just loved to lick Aultcray's boots. All around were also women playing both violins and harps. The music was not bad at all, and Ryou almost found himself relaxing at the tune.

After the King made his celebration announcement, Ryou took note of everyone, Rishia had made her way towards Raphtalia and the two were entertained, tasting everything they could find, and socializing, something that brought a small smile to his face. Naofumi being the anti-social type of guy was perched on a window in the back, and the Bow Hero couldn't even begin to judge his fellow hero.

Taking another look around, he found Ren also trying to look as invisible as possible, apparently he shared both Ryou's and Naofumi's distaste for these kinds of events. Ryou also took note of the glass of wine in the hero's hand, and wondered if there was any rules about the consumption of alcohol in Melromarc.

The Bow Hero did send a wave with a harmless smile on his face towards the captain of the knights. The man had a nice purple bruise on his face, that made Ryou smile grow an inch wider. The captain's eyes widen when they met Ryou's, and immediately turned around much to the Bow Hero's amusement.

_Guess that one learn his lesson..._

Finally his eyes rested on his target. Motoyasu was chatting with a couple of girls, no doubt bragging about his own 'amazing' feats. Thankfully Malty was nowhere in sight so Ryou made his way towards the Spear Hero. Unfortunately he was interrupted along the way by another voice.

"Excuse me Yuusha-sama, a moment if you allow it." Turning around he found a man taller than himself, clad in a full suit of armor.

"Yes?" Ryou almost drawled to the man, and he seemed to puff his chest out.

"I heard how you valiantly put down the corruption on the Northern territories! When I heard of such righteousness, I could do nothing else but come here and offer my services to you! Although I also came to caution you on your choice of party members, along with the disgusting company she's in." The tall man commented, face actually scrunching on the last part.

_The actual fuck?! _Ryou's eyes widen before narrowing slightly.

"Who the hell are you?" Anger came easily, however it went completely over the man's head, since he actually hit his chest with his fist proudly before replying.

"I am Mald of the Noble house of…"

"It was a rhetoric question, I don't give two fucks about who you are!" Ryou interrupted making the man's jaw drop. The Bow Hero had actually recognized the man in a couple of seconds, however he had also remembered some other facts from the man. Mald had been the one on Itsuki's party who bullied Rishia the most, something that automatically put him on Ryou's shit list, and now he had just jumped a few places on that particular list, since apparently he wanted to restart that trend.

"Let me get this straight… You want to join my party and the first thing you do is talk shit about my party member? Not only that but you also insult Raphtalia?" Ryou questioned, with equal measure of anger and disbelief.

Mald clenched his teeth, before taking a deep breath, "My apologies Yuusha-sama but I just wanted to address how unremarkable she looks…"

"Listen buddy the only thing here that's unremarkable is your face, and your mother still raised you despise that, although apparently she forgot to impart you with this thing called manners." Ryou interrupted yet again.

Malt's face turned red at the remark but instead of flying into a rage he once again took a deep breath to calm himself.

"Be that as it may Yuusha-sama, I'm sure I could do a far better job than that…" Ryou decided that enough was enough right there, and brought his hand up to stop the man.

"I'm going to stop you right there because I'm noticing a trend here. For every shot I take at you, you fire one back aimed at my party member. That tells me that your just a bully who only goes after those he perceives weaker than him, but lowers his head to those stronger. At least Rishia is not afraid of speaking out of turn, or calling me out if needed, and actually has a personality. You though? Having you or a rock in my party would amount to the same thing. Now excuse me as I have more pressing matters to attend too, so lets continue this conversation never." Without even waiting for an answer Ryou turned around and walked away leaving a fuming Mald along with a few laughing nobles that had been in hearing shot.

_The sheer arrogance__…_ Ryou ranted in his head, wondering why everyone dissed his party member.

_Sure Rishia is shy, but she can run circles around half of the people in this room…_ With a shake of his head, Ryou took a breath before greeting the Spear Hero.

"Hey, Motoyasu do you have a second?"

Motoyasu just turned around, with his standard smile, but with a trace of satisfaction on it before returning the greeting, "Oh? Hey Ryou, sure what's up?

Ryou ignored the murmurs, and sly glances the girls were sending his way.

"I have something I want to ask about your weapon…" Ryou begun, and Motoyasu tilted his head slightly, before his eyes widen at something behind Ryou.

"Just give me a moment…" The Spear hero, murmured, and walked forward completely ignoring Ryou who's mouth almost dropped at the sheer disregard for his person. Turning around to see what had caught the Spear Hero's attention, Ryou felt his face twitch in a very bad way.

_Is this piss off Ryou day? Is this what this is?!_ Ryou snarled in his mind before making his way to Motoyasu, who was now grabbing Rishia's hand no doubt spewing is charm all over his party member.

"So what's your name my lovely maiden?" The Spear Hero questioned, in a smooth voice.

"Fuee… M-M-My n-n-name?" The girl asked, face gaining some color both from embarrassment and from the close proximity.

"Yes, certainly a lovely girl like you, as an equal lovely name to accompany her beauty." Motoyasu continued without missing a beat, but before Rishia could respond a hand clammed on the Spear Hero's shoulder pulling him away from the girl.

"Personal space, ever heard of it you dumb nut! Go recruit somewhere else!" It wasn't quite a snarl, but it wasn't a friendly statement either, especially with the glare that Ryou threw Motoyasu's way.

"Ryou, wha..?" The spear hero trailed off confused, before his eyes shifted between the bow hero, and the girl currently hiding behind him until he came to some apparent conclusion, and raising his hand to scratch his head, "...Ha, sorry, sorry! I see how it is… Not cool on my part…"

_I don__'t think, I want to know what kind of conclusion you've reached…_

Releasing a breath he tried to keep his temper in check. For some reason since arriving to this world, Ryou had developed a far shorter fuse then he ever had. It probably had something to do with the amount of bullshit he had to deal daily.

"Look, this is Rishia she's my new party member.." Ryou explained motioning to the girl that was now partly hidden behind him, "... and this guy is Motoyasu, he is the Spear Hero."

"My pleasure." Motoyasu greeted with a grin, and Rishia bowed in return.

"Fuee! T-The pleasure is mine Motoyasu-sama!" She stuttered, no doubt still embarrassed by the way she had been approached.

Motoyasu inclined his head towards her before his smile turned conspicuous, and he put his hand under his own chin.

"So that's what it took for you to stop playing solo… I see, I see… Guess you're my kind of guy after all." The spear hero finished, nodding to himself with his eye closed.

The Bow Hero ran the statement twice in his head and it was shameful to admit that it took five full seconds for him to understand just exactly what had Motoyasu been insinuating. The moment it clicked, Ryou eyes widened and he felt his own ears warming in embarrassment.

"It's not like that at..!" Ryou began to shout, before a familiar yet startled sound reached him.

"Fuee..!" Ryou turned around, and grabbed Rishia before she was introduced to the ground courtesy of a shove from Malty who had not even paid attention to it.

"Hey…" Ryou remarked towards Malty, who also ignored him.

"Motoyasu-sama! Please listen to this…" The rest was spoken in a whisper, and Ryou felt his teeth clench.

"One would expect the princess of Melromarc to have better manners than that." Ryou remarked in a clipped tone however it went mostly unheard, and the Spear Hero immediately dashed off again ignoring everything.

"Fuee, princess? But isn't Melty-sama the crown p-princess?" Rishia asked confused, and Ryou could only turn his face to the side when he saw Malty's shoulders stiffen completely.

_Ohh shit! Shots were fired!_ He bellowed in his head making a colossal effort not to laugh at the first princess especially with the constipated look she was now sporting.

"I'm still a princess!" Malty exclaimed between clenched teeth even if she was still trying to maintain her smile.

Rishia's eyes went wide as saucers and she bowed at the waist, "Fuee I'm truly sorry your h-highness! It's just that whenever I hear people talking about the princess is usually about Melty-sama!"

Ryou felt tears gather at the corners of his eyes and doubled over his shoulders shaking in repressed laughter, and Malty almost turned into a tomato with how red her face was becoming.

_Hahahahahahahahaha! Ohh gods Rishia, you__'re the gift that keeps on giving! I'm dying here!_ Ryou could almost kiss Rishia for the shots she had taken at the first princess of Melromarc. The whole thing was just beautiful, and even more hilarious because he knew she was honestly apologizing and would probably never know how much her innocent words had burned Malty.

"Naofumi!" A shout echoed around the room, and Ryou finally straightened himself.

_When I was finally starting to get in a good mood..._ His eyes turned towards the princess who had apparently forgotten about the whole affair and suddenly looked like she just won the lottery with how pleased she was.

"I heard about it... That this girl is your slave." Motoyasu accused, both his voice and posture serious.

_Plot twist, what a dramatic piece of information you've acquired..._ Ryou thought with an eye roll, he really had no patience for this kind of stupid thing.

"So what if she is, what is it to you?" Questioned Naofumi, his voice and posture completely dismissive, something that only seemed to aggravate the Spear Hero even more.

"Having a human as a slave is not right!" Motoyasu barked, and Ryou almost laugh out loud. His sentiments were apparently shared by Naofumi who answered in kind.

"What are you harping about...Slavery is legal in this country." And wasn't that the funniest of things, Ryou could almost bet that most nobles in the room had a couple of slaves each and nobody bat an eye at it, however the moment it became public knowledge that Naofumi had one, it was a worldwide scandal.

"But we have different values, we can't do whatever we want, no matter if it's legal or not!" Ryou did release a cough at that, to mask his laugher something that earned him a few side glances, not that he cared.

_Hypocrisy thy name is Motoyasu, your one of the three idiots who I'm almost sure were behind the whole Spirit Turtle thing when your egos took a hit__…_ That had been Ryou's theory about the whole thing. Sure the familiars had appeared before the other Heroes made a move. But they had knowledge about it and their actions in canon showed as much. Not only that, it fit, what better way to surpass Naofumi then to kill the biggest baddest monster around.

But now looking at the entire thing Ryou had to acknowledge that Motoyasu was definitely in a league of his own, or maybe the Spear Hero just saw the world in a way nobody else did.

"That's just your opinion, and I honestly care nothing for it…" One had to appreciate the simple ways in which Naofumi could piss people off with just a couple of words, Ryou included. Although now that he wasn't the target, he had to admit it was kinda funny, even if the entire situation was serious.

Motoyasu actually clench his teeth, before pointing his Spear towards Naofumi, "Fight me! If I win that girl goes free!"

"I didn't think he could go any lower…" Taking his eye of the amazing stupidity that was occurring in front of him, Ryou saw Ren standing next to him and for some reason he felt the need to say something.

"Don't take it at face value. I have been keeping and eye on them...Honestly it's more like Naofumi is her slave, then the other way around." Ren for his part actually looked surprised that Ryou had addressed him, before responding.

"Even if that's the case, turning people into slaves shouldn't even be allowed…" Ryou nodded at that, the Sword Hero definitely had a point and he could agree with it, however...

"True, but nevertheless both you and Motoyasu are forgetting something far more important than those kinds of values." Ryou stated, and Ren send him a side glance, before looking towards the front again..

"And that is?"

"Neither of you asked Raphtalia what her feelings about the whole situation were…" Ren could only gape at the statement. Ryou felt something pull on his sleeve, and turned to look at Rishia who was looking at the entire thing with worry her other hand clenched in front of her chest. Exhaling a small breath Ryou already knew is next course of action.

_I didn__'t really wanted to intervene but seeing her like this, I guess I really have no choice, after all Raphtalia is her only female friend here... You're like the living incarnation of my conscience, and your going to be the death of me one of these days Rishia…_ Ryou resigned himself, before patting her head twice, and making his way towards the two, where the situation was escalating with the King ordering Naofumi to accept the duel.

Ryou watched the guards, coming from behind and covering Raphtalia's mouth.

"Poor girl, while under that curse you have no choice but to defend this Rotten Shield." Ryou didn't knew all the specifications of the slave seal, but he was pretty sure it didn't worked like that.

"Okay that's quite enough!" Ryou shouted across the room, before grabbing the guard's arm and shoving it away.

"Ryou-dono, what is the meaning of this?" Aultcray demanded, and Ryou turned to look at the king, eyes narrowed.

"If you are ordering a duel then thats that, your Highness. However their presence was essential in the defense of Lute village, had they not been present the casualties would be far higher, for that reason I can't allow them to be treated as criminals." The King scoffed when he heard it even when the rest of the Nobles began to murmur.

"Be that has it may with that curse I can't allow that girl free reign, god knows what she might do…" Ryou grabbed Raphtalia's wrist and sent her a reassuring look that he hoped conveyed what he was trying to do.

"Then I will take full responsibility for her, until this matter is resolved." Ryou replied, and the King seemed to ponder on that with his eyes closing.

"Very well if that's your wish, so be it…" He conceded, and that was the end of it.

_I can__'t fight your fights for you, I can only do this much… Now the floor is yours Naofumi…_ Ryou thought, meeting Naofumi's gaze with his own.

* * *

The arena was quite big, with two levels of stands. It had two balconies in either side, on one stood the King, Aultcray. On the other end, Ryou had to repressed a shiver when he saw the Pope seating there, a mostly satisfied if passive smile on his face.

It actually took a little for him to find the seat he wanted, before taking one next to Raphtalia, with Rishia seated next to her. The demi-human's face was full of worry for her master, and Ryou couldn't help himself, before patting her on the head, prompting her to look at him.

"Don't worry, Naofumi's smart, he got this in the bag." She looked slightly reassured, before nodding, and turning towards the fight, her face now having a hint of determination.

_Especially if he as a little help, or rather someone making sure there are no interruptions__…_ Ryou thought, turning to look at the person standing a few meters in front of him. That had been the reason behind him taking so long to get a seat. The Bow Hero wanted to be as close to Malty as possible without tripping her off, and for some mysterious or maybe not so mysterious reason the girl was actually inside the arena.

They planned this far didn't they, well time to start throwing a little wrench into their plans...Screw with me didn't you...Alright, challenged accepted… Maybe this would change somethings, but this much he didn't care.

Besides Naofumi had won the match the first time, and this time he would win for real if Ryou had something to say about it. And maybe just maybe, the Bow Hero wanted some revenge on Motoyasu too, for the sheer dismissal of his person. He would acknowledged his actions might seem petty, but he also knew how to hold a grudge.

Turning to look at the match, Ryou saw as Motoyasu dashed towards Naofumi, before launching himself into the air, and coming down with his spear reared back. Sparks flew from where the spear met the shield, the strike failing to either deal damage, or make Naofumi move. Unabated, Motoyasu twirled in the air, striking with the bottom part of his spear, before touching down with another swing, that one also blocked.

"You blocked it huh… Well I suppose your title isn't just for show…" Motoyasu, remarked with a cocky grin.

"You just lost! The moment your spear couldn't pierce my shield it became your loss…" Naofumi murmured, that statement removing the grin from the Spear Hero's face.

_Getting a little ahead of yourself there Naofumi__…_ Ryou warned mentally. While true that the Shield Hero possessed amazing defense, there were ways around it, and a smarter opponent could probably find those quite easily, though that wasn't Motoyasu's case in the least.

Finally deflecting the attack, Naofumi raised himself straight, while Motoyasu fell back, eyes now holding a far more serious look in them.

Raising his spear he pointed towards the Shield Hero, as his weapon shined in a red glow. The moment the glow disappeared into the jewel, Motoyasu dashed forward.

"Chaos Spear!" Ryou watch, as the skill was unleashed and it was mostly a numerous amount of jabs, that extended into beams of light. To the average eye, the beams seemed incredibly fast, but Ryou could see most of them clearly. That wasn't the only thing the Bow Hero noticed as he watched a couple of beams grazzing the Shield Hero.

"Naofumi-sama!" He threw a side glance towards Raphtalia who had shouted in worry from beside him, before looking back to the fight.

_If you take into consideration the level gap between them, honestly that attack should have dealt some serious damage, Shield Hero or not__…_ The scratches on Naofumi hardly looked damaging, and that brought a conclusion to Ryou's head. Motoyasu just like he thought, focused on getting the best weapons, and skills but nothing else. While the skill looked pretty cool and powerful the reality was that it hardly pack as much of a punch as it should.

_All things considered, my own skills while not as showy yet, have a lot more power in them, relatively speaking_… Ryou concluded mentally, watching what was Naofumi's turn to attack, the Shield Hero, quickly made its way towards Motoyasu, and dodged the strike that had come to impale him on the chest before throwing his own punch.

The attack connected, and while it dealt almost no damage, Ryou had to smile at what he saw.

Motoyasu seemed to be in pain clenching his teeth, and looking down he saw the cause. An orange blob that could be identified as a Balloon was biting him in the side.

That sight actually made Ryou drop his smile in thought. While he knew first hand how much of a pain the little buggers could be, he also had one biting him in the side in the beginning of his journey, and he had hardly felt anything.

_No way I have more defense than a melee focused hero, so either his armor is complete garbage, or those guys are a higher level variation... _His thoughts were interrupted, by Naofumi who moved his cloak to the side revealing that his torso was covered with Balloons.

"If I can't win this fight either way, I'll just make you as miserable as I can…" That had been accompanied by an almost malicious smile from the Shield Hero.

_Be careful there Naofumi, your nasty side is showing__…_ Ryou shook his head, the smile returning. The Shield Hero truly looked more like a villain then a hero, even more so than Ryou himself.

"Fight me fair, and square you cheater!" Motoyasu roared, slashing the Balloon and popping it out of existence before dashing forward in anger. The Spear Hero had about half a second before he grunted, having slammed himself belly first into an ethereal shield.

"Air Strike Shield!" Naofumi roared with determination, and the shield that had embed itself into Motoyasu's midsection flew forward, pushing the Spear Hero backwards before dissipating, however the momentum sent the mentioned hero crashing into the ground on the other side of the arena.

Determined to push his advantage, Naofumi immediately sent his Balloons forward into Motoyasu's direction, before encasing both him, and the orange monstrosities in a round steel prison.

"Shield Prison!"

What followed next, almost had Ryou feeling pity for the Spear Hero. Almost… Trapped with the Balloons, and without any space to maneuver himself or his weapon, Motoyasu had no choice but to become a munching toy.

As entertaining as the sight was, Ryou moved his eyes towards Malty, waiting for his turn to intervene. Not a moment sooner after the shield prison dissipated, the first princess snarled before raising her hand, and started moving her lips. At the sight Ryou vaulted over the small barrier that separated the spectators from the fighters, and with a lightning fast movement, grabbed the young woman's wrist and pulled it down her palm pointing towards the ground.

Startled the woman looked towards the Bow Hero in surprise, while Ryou smiled at her, the smile never reaching his eyes.

"My lady I'm sorry, but it almost looked like you were about to intervene in this honorable duel. Surely the Princess of Melromarc would never do something so dishonorable, right..?" His voice had been both smooth, and almost apologetic, although the amount of expressions that Malty's face went through in seconds, was truly amusing. Finally her face, also turned apologetic.

"No, no! I would never! I was simply sending a small prayer towards Motoyasu-sama!" Ryou nodded at the explanation, before releasing her arm. Her face was an almost perfect combination of affectionate, appalled and sorrowful, a combination that Ryou had to question how many she had fooled with it.

"Of course I understand, Motoyasu does seems to be in a pinch…" He finished, and she looked towards the fight worried, however the small action of biting her lip gave away her true feelings.

_How self-centered can you be, that I__'m playing the same game as you, and you can't even see it…_Ryou wondered, if the First Princess actually thought herself smarter than everyone around her. Though that probably was the case, Gentlewood had been the same after all.

_But to play the devil's advocate, her acting isn't half bad when she's not going overboard__…_ It wasn't, quite the opposite actually. What truly gave her away were the little nuances in between that one could see if they were to really pay attention.

His musings were interrupted by an high pitched scream, that he actually had trouble identifying has Motoyasu.

Looking towards the fight again, Ryou almost winced at the sight.

_Naofumi that__'s just bad, not cool bro…_ However another part of him was laughing inside, and honestly Ryou couldn't help but having mixed feelings about it, before something gave away and he started chortling.

Motoyasu was crawling backwards trying to get away from the Balloons that were taking aim at his crotch, one already lodged in his tight uncomfortably close to another more sensitive part. Naofumi, was standing a few meters away from the Spear Hero with a mostly passive posture, but his expression told Ryou everything. The Shield Hero was enjoying this to the fullest extent.

"If you want to leave this arena with your head attached you know what to do, and I don't mean the one on top…" As a means of persuasion, Naofumi threw another Balloon that lodged itself, even closer then the last one.

Motoyasu's face lost all color, and was etched in complete horror, before he release a final high pitched scream.

"Okay, I give, I give, just get it off me!" After a few moments the announcement was made, and Naofumi's expression quickly changed from menacing too a mostly relieved one, and Ryou couldn't help but to feel a little proud of himself too even if he was still laughing.

_Heh not a bad ending if I say so myself__… _

However Ryou should have known that bringing about change was not that easy….

* * *

_Next Chapter: Feelings and Words_


	18. Feelings and Words

**A/N-** So here is the chapter for this week, and we are quickly reaching the end of this arc, only three more chapters to go.

Where fate continues to rear its ugly face, Rishia questions the Bow Hero's decisions and actions, and Ryou meets some old friends...

* * *

**Chapter 18. ****Wave of Calamity:**** Feelings, and Words...**

_Heh, not a bad ending if I say so myself__… _

"Winner of the Duel, Iwatani Naofumi!" The announcer shouted, however there was no standing ovation. Even the small victorious smile on Ryou's lips didn't last long against the mood around the arena. It was one of incredulity, but mostly disdain.

"The true winner of this match is Motoyasu-dono!" A voice echoed from above, prompting both Ryou and Naofumi to look upwards towards the King in complete disbelief.

"What are you saying? He gave up! I won fair and square!" Naofumi argued heatedly eyes towards the King. Aultcray sent a smirk to the Shield Hero from above as if looking down on him.

"Fair and square you say? Not quite… You used monsters to fight in this holy fight, in this holy duel. Neither I, nor anyone else here can recognize such a victory, henceforth I declare Motoyasu-dono the winner of the duel!" The King declared, both to Naofumi's and Ryou's incredulity.

_That's a bunch of bullshit, if I ever saw one!_ Ryou thought clenching his fist slightly, but it became apparent right there in his mind, that there was truly no winning against these people at least not until the Queen made her return.

"Haa! Take that you cheater! That's what you get for not fighting fairly!" Motoyasu taunted, yet if one was to look closely, the Spear Hero was breathing hard, and looked almost relieved.

_How can this guy brag when he clearly lost the fight, especially against someone who didn__'t even had a weapon?!_

"The hell are you on about?! I won this fight using what I had at my disposal! How is that cheating?!" Yet even with such a statement, Ryou knew it was over for Naofumi. Every single noble was already murmuring against him, and commenting on his less than honorable tactics.

"There's no need to listen anymore... Spear Hero, you are victorious!" The audience exploded in cheers at the proclamation

For all the things that had happen between them, and no matter how many times they butted heads, now looking at the despair slowly appearing in Naofumi's face, for the first time Ryou truly felt sorry for the hero.

"Now then, since Motoyasu-sama was the winner, the girl goes free… Malty would you be a dear, and collect the girl, please?" The King asked. The Princess actually smiled, almost shining with pleasure.

"Yes father!" She went with a spring in her steps towards Raphtalia who was protesting and resisting, before a couple of swords appeared close to her neck, and she was forced to stop.

"Come on now, very soon you will be free!" Malty almost cooed at the demi-human who was baring her teeth towards the princess.

"You… You people have no righ..! Gah!" Whatever Raphtalia was going to say, was cut off by a rag that was put in her mouth, along with a couple of handcuffs.

"Hey what the hell!" Ryou took a few heavy steps towards the demi-human, but a hand on his shoulder stopped him from going any further. Turning around to look at who had the stupid idea of trying to stop him, he came face to face with the Sword Hero.

"Ryou… You said you would take responsibility until this matter was decided… It's over now, the King will set her free. I don't understand where this sense of loyalty that you have towards Naofumi came from, especially after what he did, but there's nothing you can do anymore..." Ryou shoved the hand on his shoulder, before turning around and taking a deep breath, however he made no move to intervene anymore.

_This is just bullshit, and it isn__'t right…_ Ryou growled inside, anger coursing through his body, yet he knew that Ren's words were logical, more than the Sword Hero would ever realize. If he tried anything else it could start a fight. There was also the presence of both the King and the Pope, so even if he could get away with it, it would make his situation even worse, especially now that he was under scrutiny from the Church of the Three Heroes.

Just as realization hit him, his body almost sagged in defeat.

It became hard watching Raphtalia, who he had fight side by side, and someone who he owed his life to, getting dragged against her will. He tried to rationalized that it would be for the better, that it would all turn out alright, yet it didn't made it a better pill to swallow.

"R-Ryou-sama…" A familiar voice reached him along with a pull on his sleeve. Taking a look besides him, he locked eyes with Rishia who looked ready to cry at the sight her voice sound pleading. Ryou sent her a sad look, but shook his head.

Looking towards his fellow Hero, who was now on the ground calling out for Raphtalia, Ryou couldn't help but to apologize mentally towards both of them….

_I'm sorry Naofumi__… I'm sorry Raphtalia… But, I'm not a Hero… I'm not that righteous… I'm just a really selfish, and cowardly guy… _

The Bow Hero watched as a man wearing a cloak, dropped some liquid over Raphtalia's slave seal, and in a shimmering light the marking vanished.

"Be grateful to Motoyasu-sama, for its thanks to him that you are free from this horrible curse…" Malty proclaimed with a small sly smile. However the smile vanished quickly because the moment she was free, Raphtalia took three steps towards the Spear Hero, before slapping him the face. Motoyasu's head moved to the side on impact, and he stood there completely perplexed.

"How dare you!" The First Princess demanded however she took a step back the moment the demi-human turned towards her, Raphtalia almost shook in anger before snarling.

"How dare I?! How dare you! Who ever told you I wanted or needed to be free!" Motoyasu looked completely lost at what was happening, and took half a step towards the girl.

"But you were his slave! He was abusing you right?" The Spear Hero asked uncertain, and Raphtalia took half a step back to put some distance between them, however her fist clench in anger.

"What the hell do you know about Naofumi-sama?! Not even once as he abuse either my person or my trust in him, and he never asked me to do something I couldn't do!"

Ryou looked at the scene with a small humorless smile tugging at the corner of his lips.

_How pathetic am I, when a girl not even in her teens in age as more courage to stand up for what's right then, I do__…_ He had made his choice and would go down with it, yet now hearing Raphtalia speaking he couldn't stop the self-deprecating thoughts that ran through his mind.

"He only used the cursed seal, when I was afraid to fight!" Raphtalia remarked fullheartedly, and Motoyasu pounce at the opening.

"But that's wrong! Nobody should be forced to fight!" He defended, and Ryou found his eyes, moving towards the King who was now standing behind the Spear Hero. The man didn't acknowledge such a statement, however Ryou couldn't help but to find some irony in hearing that.

"Naofumi-sama doesn't have a weapon, so I fight for him, in exchange, he defends me with his life, he lets me rest when I need!" The demi-human continued unabated, before she pressed her palm against her chest.

"He gave me food, and let me eat what I wanted with the little money we had, he gave me medicine to treat my illness, he played ball with me on our down time, and fixed my hair when it grew too much." Raphtalia proclaimed with a small smile as she remembered those memories, before it turn back into a frown and her eyes narrowed at the Hero before her.

"Are you merciful enough to extend your hand to a slave on the brink of death?" She asked with a heavy tone, and the Spear Hero flinched before responding hesitantly

"O-of course I would..."

"If that were true, then why isn't there one right next to you at this moment?" She questioned, and Motoyasu looked down in shame having no response to that.

Throughout the entire thing, Ryou could only stand there, every word that came out of Raphtalia's mouth were almost a dagger to him. He himself could have spared the girl, days of being imprisoned right at the beginning, however he had been too afraid to mess with the time line. Even now that was still very much the case. There was also Naofumi who had been a bastard and had marked Raphtalia as a slave, yet even after what had happened to him he had shown enough kindness to the once small girl to earn this type of loyalty. Ryou couldn't help to wonder if his own party member possessed the same unshakable loyalty towards him, yet a small part of him already knew the answer.

_Is this really the right thing to do?_ Ryou couldn't help but to wonder in his head.

"That is quite enough out of you, you damn demi-human, is this how you pay Motoyasu-sama kindness?" Malty demanded, yet Raphtalia responded in kind.

"I never asked for his intervention, nor did I needed it. If Yari no Yuusha-sama as so much kindness to give, then maybe he should focus his efforts on those that truly need it." Turning around, Raphtalia made her way towards the Shield Hero ignoring both the Steaming Princess, and the Spear Hero who looked like he had been slapped again.

"Naofumi-sama…" Raphtalia addressed softly, stopping just a meter shy of the said hero.

"Why are you here? Your free now thanks to Motoyasu, so just leave already…" Naofumi ordered, yet he almost sounded in pain at least in Ryou's ears.

"Listen please, I already knew about the rumors…" She began but was interrupted by Naofumi.

"I didn't do it!" Naofumi screamed, drops falling from the Shield Hero's face, before he repeated himself, this time almost like a pleading whisper, yet his voice carried itself across the arena.

"I didn't do it…" Seeing his tears, Raphtalia crouched in front of the despairing hero, encircling her arms around him, not letting go even when Naofumi tried to shake her off, yet there was hardly any strength in his attempt.

"I believe you. Even if the entire world says that you did it, I will deny it every time! Even if you won't believe in yourself, I will believe in you Naofumi-sama! You didn't do it, I knew that from the start!" Raphtalia proclaimed, and that shook Naofumi out of his despair. The Shield Hero leaned slightly back looking towards the Demi-human girl, his face showing nothing but incredulity.

"Raphtalia?" He questioned, not completely sure, and she offered him a small exasperated smile before responding.

"Who else would it be? Honestly… You're still seeing me as a child aren't you? This might be bad timing on my part, but you know us Demi-humans grow up as we level, at least physically.." Raphtalia looked self-conscious admitting that, however Naofumi just continued to look perplexed at her, his mouth opening slightly.

"If you still cannot believe my word, then place the seal on me once again, and allow me to become your sword once more, the one that will follow you through fire and brimstone if needed." That finally hit the Shield Hero, and it was apparent that it was exactly what he needed to hear, because he grabbed on to the girl like a life-line, silently crying his eyes out.

Ryou turned to make his retreat, knowing that things had ended more or less as they should have originally, yet he couldn't stop the fire that was burning just under his skin, it became even worse when he heard Motoyasu just as he passed by the Spear Hero, still trying to defend himself.

"I wasn't in the wrong, what's wrong is a Hero having a slave." Ryou knew he should have kept walking everything was over and it ended in a positive note, yet those words locked him in place and he was unable to keep quiet anymore.

"Yes you were! Right from the beginning! You started something meaningless for nothing, and only ended up looking like an idiot, and a loser." Ryou hissed glaring at the Spear Hero who look taken aback before he returned the glare, and slamming the end of his spear on the ground.

"People's lives aren't meaningless Ryou! Having a slave is nothing short of a crime!" Ryou continued to glare at the Spear Hero, before replying.

"Is that truly your problem? Because if it is you better start challenging half of this room to a duel then, because I can bet that most of them have slaves of their own, and they aren't treated nearly as well as Raphtalia. And yes it was meaningless! What exactly did you accomplished here besides looking like an asshole, and causing heartache to everyone involve?" The Spear Hero eyes finally went to the floor but still tried to defend himself

"I was only trying to do what was right…" Ryou scoffed at the feeble defense.

"By shoving your values onto people, without even taking their feelings into account? There are limits to this whole white knighting thing you have going on, and that's when you start hurting people… Yet you didn't stop there did you? No… You still went and placed your own values above even that... You know, there's a saying in my world that sums this up quite nicely, and it goes like this, 'The road to hell is paved with good intentions…' You should be able to understand what it means so get a grip Motoyasu, and start thinking things through…" Ryou finished, before continuing towards the exit leaving the Spear Hero with his eyes still on the ground.

* * *

The streets of Castle Town were completely empty, even the merchants that were present during the night before the wave hit were nowhere in sight. However this fact went over Ryou's head, the Bow Hero kept walking in a straight line, taking small note that Rishia was following him in silence.

After a few minutes, they reached the Commercial zone and Ryou turned his head slightly to address the girl.

"Rishia go back to the Inn…" He ordered in an emotionless tone.

"What about you R-Ryou-sama..?" She asked in an hushed voice, hands in their usual position clapped in front of her chest.

"I have something that I need to do, don't wait for me. At the very least I'll come back in the morning." He informed before continuing on his way but a sniffle brought him to a complete stop.

Rishia was just a couple of meters behind him, but even in the darkness he could see the small shining trails that were starting to run down her face.

"Y-You were kind enough to save me… To save my family, and village, because it was the right thing to do… B-But then, one moment your intervening in their behalf, the next you just stopped and did nothing else. You looked so angry when talking with M-Motoyasu-sama, calling everything he did s-stupid, but if you were that angry, why didn't you stop it..?" She questioned voice cracking at the end, her tears not stopping even as she tried to wipe them away with her sleeve.

Standing there perplexed, Ryou couldn't even get his mouth opened, as his own party member threw everything that had been eating him from the inside, at his face.

"Fuee… Are they your friends, or are they meaningless? I don't know what to think anymore…" She said hiccuping at the end.

_My conscience indeed__… _

Ryou's eyes found the ground for a moment. In hindsight this had probably been brewing for a while. He had moved, and made decisions without explaining anything to Rishia at least as far as Naofumi had been concerned, so from her point of view, it probably looked just like his decisions were just random and a complete contradiction.

She wasn't psychic, she couldn't read his mind, yet he subconsciously expected her too, but she was only human after all. Rishia probably viewed both him and Naofumi as pretty good friends, and if that was the case it was only normal for her to question his actions.

Moving towards the crying girl, he stopped right in front of her, with a sad look.

"I'm sorry Rishia… You're right... If I don't talk to you and explain things, I can't expect you to understand…"

Seeing the tears running down her face, Ryou couldn't help but to feel miserable about the whole thing. Raising his hand, he gently wiped them from her face, prompting the girl to look at him.

"...They aren't meaningless, I wouldn't call them friends, but I do owe them my life… Believe me, I really tried to help them, but I couldn't do anymore then what you saw…"He explained to the girl who was still shaking slight.

"Why?" She questioned, after a second.

That was the big question, one that encompassed everything that had come to pass, and the one he had failed to explain all this time. Ryou took a moment to collect his thoughts, there were a lot of factors in his decisions.

"Rishia… No doubt you already know that the King hates Naofumi… Not just the King, but Malty too, as well as most Nobility… The people that hold power in this country would like nothing more then to get rid of him…" Ryou trailed off, and Rishia rubbed her eyes before interjecting.

"I-Is it because demi-humans worship the Tate no Yuusha-sama?"

Ryou confirmed with a tilt of his head, before lowering his voice to almost a whisper.

"Yes, but that's only one factor, there's also the Church of the Three Heroes. In public they might look like they worship the three heroes, but the reality is different, or rather to them we are just means to an end, and to them the Shield Hero might as well be the incarnation of the devil itself…"

At least Rishia had stopped crying, even if her eyes were both red, and puffy, her voice coming out slightly raw.

"But Naofumi-sama didn't do anything wrong. Raphtalia-chan, wouldn't stand up for him if the rumors were true… He help defend Lute village, they both did, people should see that.. so why?!" There was a small trace of indignation in her words.

A smile bloomed in Ryou's face, but it was a twisted, ugly thing.

"People only see what they want to see Rishia, and sometimes even if everything else points to the contrary of their beliefs, they have no problem turning the other way around if it suits their fancy. There's probably a lot of favor to be gained by siding with the King, and the Church, and even if there are those who think its wrong, well… You know personally what happens to those that go against the King…"

Rishia easily made the connection, and in a moment realization became apparent in her face.

"Was that why Ryou-sama didn't intervene back there..?" She questioned in an hushed tone.

His expression turned into a sullen one, but he nodded.

"Yeah, among other things… Listen even with my title I'm not unstoppable, or a god… My influence in this country just goes as far as the crown is willing to support it, at least for now, and I'm already in thin ice as it is. Putting your father back in a position of power, overthrowing Gentlewood, even the small support that I gave Naofumi already as everyone raising their eyebrows at me… Even the god damned Pope, is getting weary…" passing a hand through his hair, Ryou shook his head before continuing, "If I had done anymore, it might have marked us both as enemies, and that's something that I can't afford right now, neither of us can. If we openly support the Shield Hero and make Aultcray our enemy, with the power that he currently as, along with the support of the main religion in this country, we would get shut down faster than we can blink, and from what I know he would easily go that far and even further if it stops Naofumi from gaining an ally…"

Rishia shoulders dropped, and she looked has defeated as he had back when he realized is limits.

"It isn't fair… The waves are the true enemy, we should all be working together, not fighting among ourselves…" She argued lightly.

Smiling sadly, he laid his hand on top of her head and ruffled her hair slightly in comfort.

"Congratulations, you are wiser than most people in this country, maybe in this entire world. Unfortunately things aren't that simple. A person can be smart, but in general people are just stupid, and greedy, and as much as I would like to smash their heads against a wall until they smarten up, I can't… We are both still too weak to pick doing what is right, over what is smart. For now the only thing we can do is keep our heads low, and get stronger until we have the strength to be able to choose."

That was the reality of their situation, sure Ryou would have liked nothing more then have an united front against the waves, however that wouldn't be possible for a long time, if ever.

"I know this sucks, but for now we have to play it smart… Besides it doesn't mean we have to turn a blind eye to all wrongs, only that we have to be subtle when going about it… Okay?" He proposed softly, and she nodded lightly in agreement before her head lowered again.

"Fuee… I'm also sorry Ryou-sama, for breaking down l-like that, but I just didn't knew what to make of everything anymore…" She mumbled looking exhausted.

"Don't apologize, you have nothing to feel sorry for, I was the one in the wrong here, I didn't took your feelings into full consideration, so your reaction was completely understandable." He paused for a moment continuing with a little more strength in his tone.

"Listen, when I agreed to let you join, I didn't do it with the expectation of gaining a minion, even if I treated you has one subconsciously… What I wanted was a partner, so don't ever be afraid of asking things or voicing your opinion, in return I'll try to be more transparent about my decisions and motives, alright?" He proposed extending his hand to her with a small smile, one that she mimicked, before grasping his hand.

They stood there in the darkness of the night, just absorbing the feeling of understanding between them, both their eyes looking at their hands, finally his brain caught up with what he was doing, and he let go with a cough. His cheeks felt suspiciously warm at the moment, and his eyes when to the side in embarrassment. He wasn't the only one, because Rishia also refused to look at his face, and was playing with her fingers nervously.

"Right... Now with that settled, you should really go back to the Inn, like I said I'll meet you there later…"

"Fuee… W-What will y-you be doing at this hour Ryou-sama?" She stuttered shyly, that did nothing but make Ryou feel self-conscious of the moment they had shared few seconds prior, although he tried to shove those thoughts into a corner of his mind.

"I'm just going to vent my frustrations a little. Believe it or not I'm still pretty pissed about everything that happened…" He had reign his anger when talking with Rishia not wanting to lash out at the person less guilty in all of this. However just thinking about the entire night made him angry beyond belief.

Taking a breath, he noted she was looking at him with apprehension, and he forced a smile.

"Don't worry, I won't do anything crazy, but right now I don't trust myself not to punch the next person who looks at me funny…" He tried comforting her, and finally she relented with a nod, one that he mimicked.

* * *

The forest was almost pitch-dark, yet such a thing didn't stop Ryou from leaving a trail of slaughter in his awake. He hadn't even bother to pick up the remains from the monsters, just plowing through them like a hot knife on butter. Now that he had no need to restrain himself, he finally let all his anger explode, and explode in a magnificent fashion it did.

_To hell with every single one of those bastards! They are all a bunch of self-centered idiots, who can__'t see the big picture..!_

Aultcray was an asshole… Ryou for the life of him couldn't understand the true roots behind the King's beef with Naofumi - what he knew however was that Aultcray was very surely screwing them over with his petty hatred…

_Doesn__'t the bastard realize that the waves will only get exponentially worse?!_ Ryou question in aggravation, while another arrow blew off the top half of an Usapil, blood splattering everywhere, even on his armor, not that he cared at the moment.

Separating the heroes like he was doing, was bound to bite them in the ass. If he took Fitoria's words literally, then even if they make it pass everything he knew from the story, things would only get worse, much worse. they always did.

_Doesn't that idiot realize, that if we fall, so will this country, and his family along with it?!_ Did Aultcray hate the Shield Hero so much that he didn't even care, or was he just confident they would pull through without Naofumi? And Malty? Did that stupid self-centered princess not realize that she couldn't rule a country that didn't exist?

"They are all idiots, not even a single working brain cell between them!" Ryou snarled in disgust, before he shifted his thoughts to the other heroes.

_How could I ever think I could deal with Motoyasu__…_ The Spear Hero was something else alright… At the beginning Ryou had actually thought Motoyasu couldn't be as stupid in reality has he had been portrayed in the Story.

_Ohhhh boyyyy... Was I wrong__…_ The guy just didn't listen, the moment he made his mind, he would plow through everything without even taking a minute to think if it was truly the right thing to do, and worse he would double down on it as many times as it took, refusing to see reason…

_Bastard doesn__'t even care about doing the right thing, he's probably just after those juicy White Knight Brownie points, and pats on the back…._

_And Ren__…_ Ryou released a sarcastic laugh that echoed in the night. The one Hero he had written off as a pain in the ass, had been the only one that had yet to piss him off, though he wasn't holding his breath on him either. Although everything with Naofumi was already way in the past.

"Grrrrrr..."

A very familiar growl echoed from the tree's, prompting Ryou to look in the general direction of the sound.

In the darkness, three pairs of blue eyes shined in the darkness, familiar eyes that had haunted his dreams for a while now.

Now in their presence once again the Hero felt nothing but amusement mixed with anger, another twisted smile appearing in his face.

"You picked a really bad time to come down from the mountains for a meal, do you know why?" He knew the monsters couldn't understand him, much less answer him, yet he felt the need to talk, making his way in their direction with purposely slow if steady steps.

"Because, honestly at this moment… I'm all out of fucks to give." He finished his eye lids droping halfway, his bow morphing into the one he had gained from absorbing the goat head from the Chimera, and with that action the wolves pounced.

"Ramming Shot!" The arrow hit the middle one in mid air, the shock wave sending it flying outside of view.

A second one tried to pounce on him however Ryou rotated, foot swinging in the air in the blink of an eye, hitting the wolf on the side of its head. The creature was sent flying sideways, crashing into the ground. Still in mid spin, his bow changed yet again, and he pulled another arrow this one made completely of flames, banishing the darkness around him.

Finishing his spin facing the third one, who was almost on top of him, Ryou sidestepped the maw aimed at his head, far faster then the wolf could react, before releasing the flaming projectile. The arrow made of condensed flames hit the wolf at an angle right between its ribs, coming out on the other side, leaving behind only a flaming corpse.

His eyes quickly locked on the wolf he had kicked, the beast already in the air once again, yet this time Ryou made no move to avoid it, and willed his bow back into bracelet form.

Just before the _Dire Wolf_ could bite his head off, Ryou grabbed both upper an lower jaw with his hands, sliding back slightly from the force, but nothing else.

_Amazing what a couple of levels and a few stats can do, this game like strength is truly ridiculous__…_ Ryou contemplated dispassionately, watching the creature that definitely weighted more then he did struggling against him but making no progress what-so-ever.

"You know, your cousin did quite the number on me… Fucking thing almost tore my arm off… So I was thinking… How about I paid you back in a similar fashion in its stead?" Ryou finished, grasping both parts tighter, and pulling them in opposite directions. There was a loud whimper, before a horrible tearing sound was heard followed by something snapping, and the wolf stopped moving.

Letting go of the monster, Ryou shook the numb sensation on his arms, before turning towards the direction he had sent the first one last _Dire Wolf_ just stood there observing him beyond the darkness, however instead of attacking, it turned around after a moment and fled.

Ryou snorted, easily finding the irony in that action.

_How the tables have turned__…_ The Bow Hero did consider going after it, but after a moment he decided it wasn't worth the effort especially since it would be a pain to catch it in the dark forest.

"Well.. That was particularly brutal… You're going all out today it seems, Yuusha-sama…" A familiar voice came from above him, and Ryou closed his eyes briefly.

_And then there's this to finish my day on a high note__…_ Turning around not even bothering to acknowledge her, Ryou begun to walk away. However the sound of her feet hitting the ground behind him, brought him to a stop.

"I'm really not in the mood to deal with you right now, especially not after the little game you played without my consent…" Turning his face towards her, he noted she looked slightly surprised.

"Come back when your ready to lay all the cards on the table, and if you can't do that, then don't bother to show your face to me again." Ryou finished, turning back towards the front.

He only took a few steps before the Shadow Maid reply reached him.

"Well… If you want me to lay all cards on the table, then maybe I should start by explaining my specialty as a Shadow…" She commented lightly, walking slowly in a semi circle.

Narrowing his eyes, still with his back turned Ryou asked, "And that is?"

A little laugh reached him before she explained, "As you know I work mostly as a spy but my biggest talent is Illusion magic, or more specifically I specialize in manipulating thoughts and actions…"

Another laugh was heard, most likely because Ryou's shoulders when stiff as a pole as he considered the dangers of a person having such an ability.

"Don't worry Yuusha-sama, my magic doesn't work on you heroes, it hardly works on other humans as it is, and only on those that have a weak will…"

"Why are you telling me this?" He asked in confusion and maybe a little of apprehension. He could never get a read on her.

However instead of answering, the Shadow Maid just continue explaining, as if she hadn't heard him, "However it works wonders on monsters, shame it doesn't work on those from the wave for some reason, but on the ones in this world..? Just a little probing, and I can have them doing whatever I want…" She finished, and Ryou could almost picture the infuriating smile on her face, none-the-less his mind began to run circles around the piece of information she had offered, an then his eyes widen when he remembered a particular memory.

"_Hmm... That sounds like Mountain Dire Wolves, but that's impossible… In all my years as a knight, I never saw them coming down from the mountains, much less coming this close to town…"_

"_That, doesn't even sound like animal intelligence, it sounds like it moved to protect his pack mate, but with that, the trap, and waiting for you to turn your back before attacking, that sounds like primate levels of intelligence, or worse…"_

Something dark and ugly unfolded inside of him, and coupled with everything that had happened since being summoned to this world, Ryou saw red. Moving before he even heard the scream that escaped his mouth, he spun around, fire dancing from the tip of a new flaming arrow, and with rage that he didn't knew he had the Bow Hero released the projectile, eyes lock on the mocking smile in her face.

"You bitch!"

* * *

_Next Chapter - All Cards on the Table_


	19. All Cards on The Table

**A/N-** Hi guys! Here I am with another chapter, once again a little sooner then expected, but I prefer to release them sooner rather then later when me Friday's get messy. This chapter is quite a bit longer then normal, but there was a lot that I wanted to cover in this one, also expect the next two to be similar in length, Also hurray for 100k words, though its kinda sad we are only now wrapping up the events after the first wave... However I like the current pacing and how I'm developing the Story so there's that.

On a side note, I know that Naofumi's Strengthening Method is not mastering the bonus of all the weapons, I just wanted to get that one out there.

There's only two chapters until the end of this arc, so yeah...

Now in this chapter... Where some things come to light, Ryou gets a mysterious new party member, starts a new interesting rumor across town, and uses less than honorable means to get what he wants.

* * *

**Chapter 19. Wave of Calamity: All Cards on The Table**

_Something unfolded inside of him, and he saw , before he even heard the raw scream that escaped his mouth, turning around, flames danced from the tip of his bow, and, with rage that he didn't knew he had he released the projectile eyes lock on the smile in her face._

_"You bitch!"_

The flaming arrow flew straight aimed at the Shadow Maid's head, the skill once again illuminating the forest, yet even fire-made projectile failed to remove the small smile from her face. Raising her hands in front of herself she exclaimed.

"Zveit Water Orb!"

Similar to Rishia's preferred attack but three times larger, a great globe of water formed in front of her hands and she kept it there. Ryou watched as his arrow hit the orb, and pushed the entire thing along with the maid back, her feet sliding a few meters. After a few moments of clashing, his arrow detonated expanding in the form of a dome made of flames that merged with the water orb turning the entire thing into steam, momentarily obscuring vision.

A few moments later the maid became visible and she dusted her hands as if cleaning them out of invisible dust, before placing them on her waist, tilting her head to the side slightly. "Got that one out of your system, Yuusha-sama?"

Ryou snarled at the indifference in her voice and posture, "I thought the Queen of Melromarc was actually a decent person, but it appears the apple doesn't fall far from the tree now does it?" The smile on the maid's face finally disappeared, replaced with a far darker expression and suddenly the whole clearing felt a few degrees colder.

Moving faster than even Motoyasu had moved, she came at him hand pulled back, before releasing a palm strike directed at his midsection. However among the Four Legendary Heroes he was the one who specialized in speed for a reason, eyes following the movement he deflected the strike to the side, the Maid's momentum throwing her out of balance, before Ryou followed through with a kick to her waist that sent her rolling into the ground.

Placing a hand on the ground she twirled herself around, before landing in a crouched position.

"I won't allow anyone to bad mouth her Majesty in my presence, not even you Yuusha-sama…" The Maid hissed.

Ryou just tilted his head to the side, completely throwing caution to the wind. "Why? Afraid you'll find that your Queen is as big of an whore as her eldest daughter?"

With an almost inhuman growl she took out a short sword from where Ryou couldn't even begin to guess, and jumped into the air.

"Rapid Shot!" The Bow Hero released his skill upwards, however his arrows were deflected to the side by the Maid one after the other. As she finished deflecting the final one, she brought her sword down on him, and Ryou responded by pulling on another arrow, but instead of releasing it, he swung his bow to meet the bladed weapon with every bit of strength he had. The arrowhead met the sword, sending sparks everywhere, but the action worked as intended, since the sword was deflected upwards.

Just as her feet met the ground, Ryou threw yet another kick to her midsection, however this time she grabbed it under her arm. Gritting his teeth, Ryou jumped on one leg lashing out with that same feet, hitting her in the chest, and sending her crashing backwards.

Dropping on the ground Ryou raised himself into an half crouch, turning around to face the Maid, arrow already pulled back, and was forced to stop.

The arrow on his bow, was now aimed at the center of the Maid's forehead the arrowhead almost touching it. The woman had recovered in record time from his kick was also almost on top of him, her sword inches away from his neck.

Neither moved... The only sounds for a few moments were the heavy breaths from the short skirmish. It was the Maid who eventually broke the statemale.

"What happened was of my solo design, without her Majesty's consent, so don't you dare blaming her…" The statement came with some heat, however hearing it did nothing to abate his own anger.

"Why?! Do you have any idea what you did?! Three people died because of that! Hell I almost died! Not only that but you even endangered both Naofumi, and Raphtalia!" Ryou screamed, and her shoulder dropped a fraction, her hair falling slightly over her face.

"I truly feel sorry for that, but it was a necessary evil… Sacrifices have to be made to win a war…" She almost whispered, but the determination in her voice was undeniable.

Ryou's eyes widened in disbelief, before voicing it, "Necessary?! Sacrifices?! What the hell are you talking about?! How the hell does that even justify what you have done!"

"Because you were hesitating!" The Maid finally raised her voice, shouting back at the Bow Hero.

"What?" Ryou couldn't make heads or tails of what he was hearing.

The Maid let her sword fall to her side, and away from his neck. "You are the wisest, and the most prudent of the Four, there's no doubt about it, but you were poking the ground in front of you with a stick before stepping on it!" She explained heatedly taking a breath before continuing, "I saw you, I'm almost always following you! You were even afraid of stepping out of Castle Town! You have the potential to be an amazing ally, and the strongest among the four of you for sure, but there's a fine line between being cautious and being a coward, and guess to what side you were leaning towards?! How can we trust a hero to save us, if he's even afraid of his own shadow!"

Having the unmistakable raw truth thrown in his face, Ryou gritted his teeth and almost smashed his face against the Maid's.

"I never asked for any of this! I never asked to be force to fight in your fucking war! Or to be herald as some stupid savior! Or to try and save a world that isn't even mine!" He screamed in her face, the Maid also responded in kind smashing her forehead against his with a snarl.

"Well tough! We never asked for the waves either, yet here we are! Do you think the people whose houses were destroyed, and whose families were slaughtered asked for any of this?! Yet fate as saw fit to curse us, and the only thing we can do is either fight or perish!" Ryou could understand where she was coming from, but he couldn't help but growling.

"That's horrible I understand that much, but get it into your heads already, I'm not a goddamn hero, and that wont change no matter what pretty title you slap on top of me! The only thing I care about is my own survival!"

"Are you trying to convince me of that, or yourself..? And be that as it may, if you want to survive you will have to fight, I know that you understand that much at least..." She leaned back, and took a deep breath.

"Perhaps the way I went about it was wrong, and rest assured that her Majesty already made her displeasure known to me… But you can't deny that you got stronger, both physically, and mentally… It definitely shows. I heard you fought admirably during the wave, and without your intervention Lute village might have perished. Not only that but no matter how many times you deny it, your actions were heroic in the eyes of the people…" Ryou released an huff, before taking a seat on the ground. He couldn't deny anything of what she was saying. He had also reached the conclusion that the incident with the wolves had been the push that he needed, however he didn't appreciate having the rug pulled from under him, and the way she went about it also let a lot to be desired.

"What about the whole thing in the Northern Region? Was that just me cleaning up for you guys before the situation escalated?" Ryou inquired, and the Maid finally smiled again shaking her head.

"I have been trailing you for almost half of the past month, and I have yet to figure out where you get your information from…"

"People talk, between keeping an ear open, and using your brain you can normally get a clear picture of what's going on, or at least a reasonably accurate one…" Ryou shrugged as he finished. That was mostly a big fat lie, but it was usually how these things worked.

"Very true. but It is as you say, although that one was slightly personal… Gentlewood had to be stopped, and using you was the only way we could make it happen without arousing much suspicion…" She explained, and Ryou chuckled humorlessly.

"And yet again I was left without a choice, and went in completely blind I might add."

"And once again, you got more out of it than your troubles worth, after all you now have a party member with amazing potential. With some time and experience she will truly be a force to be reckoned with…" She stopped momentarily, and Ryou saw her smile turn slightly sly, "…Besides she as been good to you. You changed a little, and you're quite protective of her… Not allowing the Spear Hero near her, and that heartwarming moment in the middle of Castle Town at night…" She finished laughter clear in her voice, that turned into a small chuckle when Ryou lowered his head.

"Shut up, you goddamn stalker…" He mumbled, and still chuckling lightly she shrugged, before shooting back

"It's not a crime if your boss is the one who makes the laws…"

_Touch__é…_ Ryou allowed mentally, however he once again couldn't deny her words, even if the price had been getting under the eyes of the Church, he wouldn't trade Rishia for anything. Hardly two weeks had passed since he met her, and already she was an irreplaceable part of his team… Even if there were only two members at the moment.

"It was in a roundabout way, but as you can see we have been helping you Heroes, though our efforts are mostly on you and on Tate no Yuusha-sama, since the others are making good use of the King's grace, maybe a little too much… ." She offered.

"You have been helping Naofumi? Really?" Ryou asked with a doubtful tone, there was nothing indicating such a thing.

"Yes of course, where do you think he got the money to acquired that Demi-human girl?" She questioned with a small secretive smile.

_Now that she mentions it__…_ Ryou hadn't even thought about it back then, but it was true that Naofumi would take forever to kill anything, so that wasn't a feasible way to raise money. The only way he could have bought Raphtalia would have been by selling medicine but that also wasn't the most profitable way of making money by any means, so it would have taken ages to raise thirty silver, however he couldn't also picture the Shield Hero accepting money from anyone at that point. As if reading his thoughts the woman in front of him released a small laugh.

"You should have seen him! We had to drop the bag of coins three times in his path for him to see it, and when he did he spent the next five minutes glaring at it like it was a cursed item!" She explained with amusement shaking her head.

_Now THAT sounds about right__…_ Ryou allowed with a snort. He could almost picture Naofumi glaring at the bag, before looking towards the sky waiting for the other shoe to drop.

"We also worked with the slave trader, so that he would approach him without arousing suspicion." She added as an afterthought.

_They think of everything, but that begs the most important of questions__…_

"You guys work for the Queen, and I know for a fact that she is the biggest power in this country, so why are you going about it in such a manner?" Ryou asked in confusion.

Releasing a sigh the Shadow Maid, leaned back,"The Church of the Three Heroes has Shadows of their own, they keep an eye on the Heroes, though Tate no Yuusha is by far the one they use most of their manpower on. For now they are only watching but if we make a more visible move, they might respond in kind. Besides you should also take into consideration that even if Mirellia-sama is the absolute ruler of this country, she is only one person, and not only is she not present, but if she were to put her foot down out of nowhere in a country where everyone was taught since birth that the Tate no Yuusha was evil, it would give rise to discontentment, add to it the current shaky political situation, and Melromarc would turn into a perfect storm. "

_This country is a mess no matter how you look at it__…_ Ryou concluded, realizing that the Queen's hands were tied at the moment before remembering his current situation.

"Gentlewood was a member of the Church of the Three Heroes…" The Bow Hero pointed out in a mumble.

"We knew…" She admitted, and Ryou scratched his head before continuing.

"The Pope knows, I was the one who dealt with him… He was subtle about it but he warned me to thread carefully…" She frowned at the additional information, shifting slightly.

"A lot of the money Gentlewood was making was being 'donated' towards the Church. I have no doubt cutting off that support might have made him a little angry…" Ryou suppressed the shiver that threaten to come out, having confirmation that he had indeed pissed off the Pope without meaning too.

"Should I expect visitors at night? You know the kind that don't just climb through a window, and start flirting with the victim?" He threw that one out there, mostly as a very small olive branch and was rewarded with a snort.

"As I recall, the one who started flirting was you Yuusha-sama, and to clarify, I didn't climbed through your window as you put it, I jumped... Well, jokes aside, the answer to your question is most likely a no. You are still popular with the public, and he can't justify getting rid of you, and yes as crazy and suicidal as that notion is, we can't discount the possibility at all, the Pope isn't the most sane of individuals you see… However I would take care while in Castle Town, and try to stay clear of it for a while just to be safe…" She cautioned, and Ryou nodded in response that was his plan for now.

Watching the woman in front of him for a moment, Ryou released a sigh at how complicated everything was becoming.

"Listen… I hate to be played, I really do… But I can't deny the results even if the execution came out being really shitty…" He sent her a pointed look, and she at least had the decency to look ashamed, before he continued, "However I doubt that was the last time you people used me to clean up your domestic messes… If we are doing this… If you guys are going to use me as the Queen's personal enforcer, then I expect to be rewarded for it. Not only that but I, want to know beforehand, what I'm going to be doing, and why I'm doing it… The entire situation with Gentlewood only worked out by a paper thin margin, and I refuse to go in blind like that again, got it?" Ryou wasn't stupid, he knew the political situation was bad out there and the last thing he needed was a goddamn war breaking out because of some stupid reason, but he also refused to be put in another troublesome and potential dangerous situation blind.

"We also have no choice but to agree to those terms Yuusha-sama, and I will let her Majesty know that she can consider you an ally." She replied and Ryou huffed yet again, feeling far older than he was.

Rising to a standing position, he offered a hand to the maid who took it with good graces. He was still pissed at everything, but he was heavily lacking in the allies department, so he would play nice as long has he could profit from it in anyway he could.

"Haa that's right! I completely forgot why I came here in the first place!", The Maid exclaimed in an excited tone, along with a snap of her fingers that completely contradicted her normal demeanor

"Wait here Yuusha-sama!" She ordered before vanishing from sight leaving a dumbfounded Ryou in her awake. After half a minute of waiting she came back with her hands behind her back, and a far bigger smile on her face.

"When we first met, I told you, I couldn't offer much besides information… Well this time, I actually brought you a gift as a job well done for dealing with Gentlewood, and for clearing the wave! I would also hate for you to be jealous of Tate no Yuusha-sama!" Ryou slowly, very slowly raised an eyebrow at her.

"Present? Don't you mean a bribe? And since when do I get jealous of Naofumi? If anything I feel sorry for all the bullshit he as to put up with." The woman pouted at him yet Ryou didn't bought the feelings behind it for a second, and narrowed his eyes in response.

"Bahh so mean, and little old me went through so much trouble to get it... Here take it!" She finished thrusting the object into his stomach. Ryou quickly caught it, and took a good look at what he was holding before his eyes widen.

"An egg?" It was a monster egg if the slave seal on it was any indication, it was inside a big glass capsule that probably served as an incubator.

"Not just any one is a very special one…" She trailed off playfully shaking her finger at him, looking far to smug.

"What kind is it?" He questioned observing the mentioned present. The first thing that came to his mind was a Filorial, but those were common so that probably wouldn't be the case.

"That's… a secret!" She looked far to happy for someone who had tried to cleave him in two just a few minutes ago.

"Ohh for fuck's sake woman just tell me, because with my luck it will be some kind of demon!" Ryou shouted, and she put her finger on her cheek, eyes turning upwards.

"With that temper, I'm sure a demon would fit Yuusha-sama just fine, but no it isn't one…" He glared at her again, but decided against calling her out on her hypocrisy. One bad word about the Queen, and she flew into a murderous rage.

"Fine whatever, I'll just wait until it hatches, although fair warning if its something weird, I'll sell it…" He warned.

"Selling back a present is really bad manners... Well I'm sure it won't come to that." She stated with confidence.

Ryou didn't knew what to make of the certainty in her voice, but he didn't like it, however this was the moment the Maid turned around before stopping, and he already knew what was coming.

"Before I leave let me tell…" She started but Ryou beat her to it, and raised one hand in a stopping gesture.

"No…" He ordered.

"No?" She questioned tilting her head to the side.

Shaking his head Ryou repeated himself, "No! Whatever is coming I don't care! It's going to be trouble! At least give me a few days before you start throwing shit at me again!"

"But it's nothing bad this time, I promise Yuusha-sama!" Ryou mouthed 'this time' in disbelief, before resigning himself.

"Fine… Shoot, but I swear…" He allowed with a warning tone, and she nodded before continuing

"As I was saying, since the next wave won't happen for a few months, that actually gives you time to visit other countries… I would try to avoid Shieldfreeden but more importantly Siltvelt. In Shieldfreeden they might not be as hospitable to a hero that's not the Shield Hero, but in Siltvelt they might just try to kill you on sight, especially since you fought in the Wave to protect Melromarc… I however recommend that you visit Zeltoble at least..." She raised her finger as if making a point, and Ryou frowned.

"Why..?" No one could blame him for being suspicious after everything.

"Well…" Ryou found himself feeling even wearier at the pause. "...The other heroes went there, because Zeltoble as some of the most powerful weapons available. I honestly don't know why, since they can't use anything besides their Legendary Weapons, but whatever it was they did there worked, because they came back far to pleased with themselves…" Ryou already knew the answer to that one.

_The weapon copy system__… Its worth checking it out…_ Ryou pondered on that for a while, before shaking himself of his musings, and realizing the maid was still present

"Wasn't that it? Isn't this where you make your dramatic exit?" He questioned, this would normally be the time where she disappeared without trace.

"There's another thing…" She trailed off softly, being immediately awarded by a groan.

"Of course there is, why wouldn't there be? I knew it… I called it…" He stopped voicing his internal thoughts, before taping his feet expectantly on the ground.

"...There is someone that your Majesty wants you to meet at Zeltoble… You weren't suppose to know this part, I was only to encourage you to go there, but since we are being truthful to one another I thought you should know…" She explained herself, and Ryou had to question the logic behind it.

"If I wasn't supposed to know, how in the seven layers of hell would I even meet this person?" She smile looking a little sorry.

"He will find you…" She Immediately waved her hands, at the nasty look Ryou sent her.. "No! No! It's nothing bad, or dangerous, I swear on her Majesty's honor!" Ryou continued to glare at her.

"What did I say about going in blind..?" He asked slowly as if talking to a child.

"Not too..? Well now you have my word that its safe Yuusha-sama, so problem solved... Bye!" With a wave she vanished, and Ryou looked at the direction she was standing for a few moments before moving his eyes upwards towards the night sky. Closing his eyes he took a very deep breath, his chest moving with the intake, before exhaling quite audibly.

"I don't care anymore, I really don't… I'm done for the day. I just want a bed… What about you?" He asked, raising the egg to eye level, before shaking the incubator gently in a manner that seemed affirmative.

"Yeah thought so… Come on let's go…" He finished, slowly making his way towards Castle town, now with a mysterious egg against his chest.

* * *

In the following morning, Ryou woke up, to a knock on his door. After assuring Rishia that he was indeed back and well, he got ready for the day before grabbing the egg, and making his way towards the room where breakfast was being served.

The room was almost full of adventurers that had fought in the wave, thankfully the green haired girl had reserved him a seat. Making his request for some pastry and a glass of milk Ryou dropped on the chair still half asleep, before placing the incubator on the table, and letting out a yawn.

"Ryou-sama why do you have a monster egg with you?" Rishia asked eyeing the new member of their party, or soon to be.

"Some whore gave it to me, and I thought it looked nice." The entire room fell into awkward silence almost instantaneously, the occupants turning to look at him with varied levels of incredulity.

Rishia's face went completely red at the statement before she stammered, "Fuee! W-Whore?! I-I-I know Ryou-sama said he w-was going to v-vent his frustrations, b-but I d-didn't think he meant t-that!"

Blinking slowly, Ryou tried to understand what exactly his partner was saying, before running the statement twice in his head. Eyes went completely wide when he realized it.

_Oh shit! Abort! Abort! Abort!_ Rising abruptly, the chair fell on the floor, and Ryou waved his hands in the air.

"No! No! That's not what I meant at all!" Ryou exclaimed in panic, and Rishia shook her head vigorously, face hidden behind her hands.

"No! I'm sorry, I-I know that R-Ryou-sama is only h-human a-after a-all.." She added embarrassed, receiving a groan in response.

_Ohh for the love of God, in a few hours there__'s going to be weird rumors all around town, I just know it.._

"Rishia, I swear I just went out of town, to hunt a few monsters. Whatever your thinking, didn't happen, got it?!" Ryou almost hissed. The last thing he needed was this.

"But Ryou-sama you mentioned a w-whore…" Picking up the chair, Ryou got back into his seat before explaining.

"Listen I went out to kill some monsters, and I met an old friend who gave me the egg, thats all…" He explained, however he could spot the skepticism on her face a mile away.

"A friend? Really? And you call her a whore?" The doubt in her voice, made Ryou scratch his head.

"It's a term of endearment.?" He stated hesitantly, almost as a question…

"Yuusha-sama, I'm sorry to interrupt but I don't think that word means what you think it means…" The man that was seated at the next table interjected, and Ryou dismissed him with a wave, before returning his attention to Rishia.

"Look… I went out, killed a ton of monsters, then she appeared and gave me the egg as a present , thats everything that happened, I promise…" For the most part… Better not mention that we almost killed each other...I did promised Rishia I wouldn't do anything too crazy and yet…

"Yet you still call her a whore..? Ryou-sama is weird sometimes..." She concluded, before her eyes finally moved back to the egg, and he released a breath he didn't knew he was holding.

"Hmm did she say what type of monster it is?" She inquired, bending forwards over the table to get a better look at it.

"Nope…"_ Honestly the day that woman answers anything completely, it will be the day the sky cracks open__… horrible pun intended…_ Ryou thought half amused at his own dark humor, half annoyed.

"We can go to the monster trader, he should be able to tell…" She supplied. Ryou thought about it for a moment, before dismissing the idea..

"Meh let it be, I'm also curious but we will see when it hatches." There was no point, they would soon find out what was it.

"But this is exciting! I wonder what it will be?!" Chuckling Ryou shook his head in mirth, she looked like a kid wondering what was in one of those surprise chocolate eggs.

"Well I now know for a fact that it isn't a demon, so with my luck it will probably be a Magikarp…" Ryou concluded, before snorting at his own joke.

"What's a Magikarp Ryou-sama?" Rishia asked intrigued. In the next moment Ryou put on his best poker face before answering seriously.

"Its a stupid fish that does nothing but splash around… Although if you give it time to grow it will eventually turn into a very violent, and nasty sea dragon…" He watched with a blank face as her eyes went wide, and her face paled slightly.

"S-Sea Dragon?! Y-You had those in your old w-world?!" She asked in horror, much to his amusement and he couldn't stop the corner of his lips from twitching.

"In a manner of speaking…" He trailed off as Rishia placed her hands on her cheeks, a hint of apprehension in her face.

"Ryou-sama's old world sounds like a very scary place…"That finally broke Ryou, and he started laughing at the poor girls expense.

_Really Rishia, there are so many dangerous things in __'this' world, yet you are afraid of a Gyarados?!_

"Fuee! How can you laugh Ryou-sama?! Sea dragons a-are s-serious business!" She admonished him, and the Bow Hero completely lost it after that.

* * *

"Fuee… Why do I have to stay here?" Rishia asked with a pout.

"I'm going to meet Motoyasu, and I don't want you anywhere near him, his stupidity might be contagious…" She hummed in thought clapping her hands on her lap.

"I don't think that such a thing is contagious Ryou-sama…"

"You would be surprised…" Ryou muttered lowly closing the door to her room behind him.

Exiting the Inn he went to track down Motoyasu, he was not leaving town without the information he needed. The reason he hadn't let Rishia come with him, was a simple one. He didn't want his party member to see what he would have to pull to get the information he wanted.

_I__'m going to get what I want even if I have to lie through my teeth, and drag my pride through the mud…_

* * *

Tracking down Motoyasu hadn't been that hard, he was staying in the single most expensive Inn in Castle Town. The Inn that looked like a five star hotel even had hot springs, a pool, and some sort of medieval casino. Ryou didn't even knew there was gambling in Melromarc.

Thankfully it wasn't Malty who answered the door, but another petite girl, with auburn chin length hair and green eyes a few shades darker than Rishia's, fully dressed in what could only be mage gear, along with a witch's hat.

"Yes..?" She questioned nervously her eyes widening slightly went she realized who he was.

"Is Motoyasu here? I need to speak with him…" His question if anything made the girl look even more nervous then before.

"Yes… but Ryou-sama, you're not here to pick a fight with Motoyasu-sama, are you?" She questioned in apprehension, and Ryou put his best smile to reassure her.

"No, nothing of the sort, I really want to just talk to him." She eyed him for a moment before nodding slightly, moving backwards to let him enter.

"Motoyasu-sama is in his room, through that door." The petite girl said, pointing towards the door on the other side of the room.

Ryou couldn't help but to marvel at the glamour the entire place had. For one their room, looked more like a VIP apartment then anything else, far bigger than his own. The other thing that jump to his attention was that everything shined, from the tableware, to the wood itself. He also noted that besides the small girl there was no one else in the room.

Making his way towards the door he grabbed the handle, but her voice interrupted him before he could open the door.

"Ryou-sama… Can I ask a question?" He turned his head towards her, and raised a eyebrow when he saw her fidgeting in place, her eyes roaming every inch of the floor.

"Sure, what is it?" He allowed.

"Yesterday… Why did you defend the Tate no Yuusha?" She questioned eyes finally stopping on some spot on the ground in front of her feet.

_What__'s with that question..?_ Ryou wondered eyeing the girl suspiciously, however unlike Malty he couldn't find trace of deception on her, she looked like she was truly confused by his actions.

Turning to look at the wooden ceiling that also sparkled to his disbelief, Ryou pondered on the question.

"Well you could say I did it on a whim and you would be correct, or you could also say it had a purpose behind it and that would also be correct…" He trailed off looking back towards her, and she was no longer fidgeting, but paying complete attention to his words, even if she still looked mostly confused.

He took a moment to observe her before comparing her to the rest. Malty and the other girls either carried themselves like prom queens or damsels in distress, but this one was different for some reason, he couldn't quite put his finger on it, but he could almost call her more transparent, or even honest.

"What's your name?" Ryou questioned after a moment, and the girl jumped a little, her hat almost falling from her head, and she quickly readjusted it.

"Ahh! Me? I'm Rino." She offered with a slight bow.

_No seriously__… How did she end up in this party? How does she even fit?_ He wondered nodding slightly before giving voice to his thoughts.

"Rino huh? How do you like being in Motoyasu's party?" Her face turned more excitable at the question and so did her voice.

"Its very exciting, and Motoyasu-sama takes very good care of all of us! He is always asking what we want to do, or where we want to go, and he also buys equipment for us. He doesn't cook very well, but he tries his hardest too! The only bad thing is…" She answered in an happy manner but trailed off at the end, her expression dropping slightly.

"Yes?" Ryou probed, and she shrink a little, hesitating slightly before responding.

"Its just… I joined this party to fight the waves, but Motoyasu-sama doesn't let us fight for some reason." She mumbled

_Doesn__'t let them fight? Isn't that a complete waste of manpower?_ Ryou questioned mentally. He knew that Malty at least could carry her weight, so why not let them help? It took only a few moments before his own eyes widen as he realized the reason.

_Ahh so your white knight mentality isn__'t just for show…_ It wasn't like the Bow Hero couldn't understand the feelings behind it, he himself tried to protect Rishia as much as he could, but he also knew he couldn't do everything alone, and the only way she was going to get truly strong was by experiencing some hardships and fighting.

"Err... Have you tried to tell him that?" He questioned, and Rino nodded slightly.

"Yes, but I don't think he understood it…" Scratching his head Ryou thought about the situation before proposing a solution.

"Well, you have to tell him seriously when you explain it to him, or he won't understand since he can be a little dense…" _Understatement of the fucking year,_ "…If you don't come out and say how you truly feel he will only think of you as someone to be protected."

Rino raised her head hugging her staff tightly against her body, her expression showing a hint of hope.

"Will that really work?" She questioned, and Ryou scratched his head again looking to the side. Getting inside Motoyasu's head, and understanding his thought process was not an easy feat.

"I think so… At the very least if you're not honest with your feelings, and motivations then its bound to create confusion." The Bow Hero supplied. That was something he now knew from experience having learn it when dealing with Rishia.

Rino at least looked more determined after hearing him, and nodded seriously, her lips forming a thin line. "Then I'll try my very best to convey it once more!"

Smiling lightly at her determination, Ryou nodded, before turning towards the door and gripping the handle.

_Well at least Motoyasu as someone with a good head on her shoulders with him, God knows he needs it, and she kind of reminds me of Rishia a little... Almost makes me regret not taking anyone with me at the beginning though__…_ He pondered before shaking his head.

Opening the door, he went inside before closing it behind him. Looking around it took only a moment for him to locate the Spear Hero. Motoyasu was lying in a double bed, eating an apple, his status window open above his head.

"Motoyasu…" Ryou greeted, and the said hero released a sigh, before closing his status window, and taking a seated position.

"Ryou…" He greeted back, although his tone came out monotonous, and there was some apprehension in his eyes.

_Okay different approach, he's still pissed about what happened yesterday__…_ Scratching his head, Ryou took a couple of steps until he was next to the bed.

"Look… I came here to apologize…" The Spear Hero's eyebrows went up a couple of millimeters, and Ryou threw him an apologetic if completely fake smile.

"Listen… During the wave I fought side by side with Naofumi and with Raphtalia… If they weren't there the number of victims would have been far higher, and I might not be here, so when I saw all of that yesterday, I flew off the handle, and ended up taking it out on you… So yeah sorry about that…"

_Bullshit..._ Ryou couldn't help but to add mentally, but if it got him what he wanted it would be worth it.

With another sigh Motoyasu passed a hand over his blond mane before addressing the Bow Hero.

"Yeah, guess I should apologize too, I should have went at it differently… Although I still don't discount the possibility that he is brainwashing her…" Ryou didn't knew if he should laugh or cry, however in reality he shrugged.

"To tell the truth, I don't really know what kind of powers the Legendary Shield possesses, although I'm pretty sure brainwashing isn't one…" Ryou commented lightly.

"Well his Highness, and Myne seem to think that is the case so there has to be some truth to it." Motoyasu reasoned with a slight frown.

_Okay that is slightly funny, so if the King and Malty say so then its the same as an irrefutable fact..?_ Ryou thought amused. Now that he had vented most of his anger, he found Motoyasu's naivety amusing, even if he knew that kind of mentality would come back to bite them all in the ass for sure.

Ryou took a seat on the ground refusing to take a seat on the bed.

_I don't even want to know what happens in this bed at night..._

"On another note, where's Malty and the rest of your party?" Ryou asked, since his least favorite female and her minions were nowhere to be found.

"Myne? She's in a meeting with her father, something about an emergency state meeting or something, she took Lesty and Elena with her..." He answered with a shrug.

_More like a __'How to screw with Naofumi next time'' kind of meeting I bet…_ Although Ryou thanked every deity whether they existed or not, for that small miracle.

"Hmm pity, I wanted to see how she's doing. If I don't see her, tell her I send my regards." Motoyasu threw a smile in his direction, but waved his finger at him.

"Hey! Hey! I know she's hot and all, but no funny business with my party members, besides you already have Rishia don't you?" Ryou lowered his head, his hair and the difference in the height hiding his face from sight, so Motoyasu only took it has the Bow Hero being embarrassed, if the following chuckle was any indication. In reality Ryou did hide his face, but it was to prevent Motoyasu from seeing him gagging at the thought.

_Gods no! Jesus no! I'm not even religious, yet I'm praying that I never have a nightmare where that happens__…_ Just the mental image was bad enough, sure the girl was beyond beautiful, but not even if she was the last woman on the planet would Ryou consider such a thing, not even counting what diseases he might get if such a thing was to happen.

"Don't worry, I honestly just want the best for her, and no funny business from me, I swear!" Ryou promised, and Motoyasu just threw his head back and laughed. It seemed then that the Spear Hero was back to his normal self, so it was time to go on the offensive.

"By the way can I ask you a favor? In return I'll teach you something awesome?" Ryou questioned expectantly.

"Yeah sure what is it?" Motoyasu probed and Ryou's shoulder's dropped slightly, trying to look as miserable as possible.

"Back at the wave I had a really hard time, and I heard how you took out every monster with no problem, so I was wondering if you could explain to me how you power up your weapon." Motoyasu tilted his head, before changing his spear from what looked like a toothpick above his ear to its original form.

"You mean this thing?" Following Ryou's nod, the Spear Hero's expression changed to a slightly more hesitant look.

"Well..."

However Ryou was not having any of it, and all but pounced, "Come on Motoyasu! You're the only one I can count on, besides in exchange, I'll teach you how to access your inventory!" Ryou enticed.

The Spear Hero released a snort looking quite smug, "I already know how to do that."

Ryou looked floored at the revelation, "Y-You do?"

With a smug smile he closed his eyes before shrugging, "Well yeah obviously, how would I use the Items the monsters drop otherwise?"

_Items that monsters drop, interesting__…_

"Well that's a shame, although it makes sense you would know about it, you were pretty pro when it came to MMORPG's, and whoever heard of one that didn't have an inventory?"

Ryou had actually thought that it didn't exist in the main story, yet apparently he had been wrong, it was only Naofumi who didn't knew about it.

"Well yeah, although this one is pretty stupid… I mean what kind of inventory doesn't let you store items at will?" The Spear Hero complained.

_Wait? What..?_

"What do you mean doesn't let you store items at will?" Ryou questioned confused. Motoyasu for his part, sent him a look as if he was stupid.

"Like… It only lets you store items that monsters drop, or that you craft using the crafting system. It doesn't accept anything else…" Ryou blinked at the Spear Hero who blinked back.

"Ahh… Yes it does..?" Ryou stated confused.

"No it doesn't…" Motoyasu argued back lightly, and slowly like if he was talking to a child.

Ryou took a look around him, before reaching for the plate full of apples on Motoyasu's bedside table, and taking one while ignoring Motoyasu's annoyance at him for stealing a fruit. Eyes focusing on the inventory icon he opened the window, then he shoved the apple inside, taking his hand out he showed it to Motoyasu who's jaw almost dropped at the sight, before reaching into it and taking out the apple. With a side throw the apple landed on the plate, and Motoyasu's mouth opened and closed a couple times trying to comprehend what he had just witness.

"W-What?! How?! Mine doesn't do that! How did you do it?"

This time the Bow Hero couldn't stop his face from showing his feelings, as a small victorious smile made its way into his face.

_Well... Well... Well__… Look who's back into the game all of the sudden…_

"Nah! Nah! Fair is fair, you teach me, and I'll teach you. How does that sound to you?" Ryou questioned shaking his finger at the Spear Hero, and the said Hero launched himself at him hooking his arm around his shoulder.

"Yeah sure no problem! Leave it to Big Brother Motoyasu! I'll make a pro out of you in no time! In exchange you teach me how to put items in the inventory, right?"

Ryou just smiled at the Spear Hero although trying to suppress the almost evil laughter that threatened to come out.

_Sucker! Well this time at least I'm grateful that your this naive Motoyasu..._

* * *

After leaving Motoyasu's Room, Ryou was on cloud nine. Now it was only a matter of putting everything in practice, and he would be able to grow stronger. The information he had just acquired was probably worth far more then any amount of gold, and what had he traded it for? How to access the inventory. It was such a bad trade he couldn't help but to laugh. He had thought about trading Naofumi's upgrade system for the others, yet he had almost immediately discarded that notion. Motoyasu would already be a pain in the ass to deal with, and Ryou refuse to give the other Heroes any more power, power that could actually come back to bite him in the ass. Besides even if he did tell them they would probably not believe him since they looked like they had everything figured out already.

_In reality the only reason why Motoyasu even believed me in the first place was probably because it was something I could show in real time__…_

After that thought, he took to track down Ren immediately. The Sword Hero proved to be a little bit more elusive. He eventually found one of the Sword Hero's minions in the Adventure's Guild after looking around Castle town. Said minion easily gave up the location of his 'Guild' leader.

_Back here again huh__…_ Ryou thought looking at the gates of the castle, not a moment later one of the guards came to meet him.

"Good Afternoon Yuusha-sama! Is there anything you require?" The guard saluted.

"Yeah can you take me to Ren? I know he is in the Castle…" Ryou asked casually.

"Just give me a moment to find someone to escort you, I can't leave my position…" The guard stated, but a voice interrupted them both.

"If it isn't a problem, It would be a honor to escort you, Yuusha-sama…" Ryou face the owner of the voice with a raised eyebrow. The figure had her hands clapped in front of her, a complete image of a common maid, yet Ryou knew better.

"The honor would be mine, to be escorted by such a beautiful lady…" He was in such a good mood he even threw in a small bow, getting a embarrassed laugh from the maid in return.

"Such a gentleman, please follow me Yuusha-sama." The Maid motioned for him to follow, and Ryou fell in step with her.

During the walk Ryou observed his 'companion'. She had plain brown long hair along with matching eyes, the only thing that jumped to his attention was the beauty mark under her left eye. Just attractive enough to hold one's attention, yet not going overboard to be able to blend if needed.

_She__'s probably using Illusion Magic, this woman truly is good at what she does…_

Crossing into a empty hallway, she finally broke the silence in an hushed tone, "You seem pleased since yesterday. Care to enlighten me on what you are plotting Yuusha-sama?"

Ryou sent her a sideways look, "Who says I'm plotting anything? I just woke up on the good side of bed this morning that's all."

She snorted softly, "Please… When you are in this business for as long as I have been, you can smell when someone is planning something from the other side of Melromarc. So are you going to tell me, or do I have to stalk you some more?"

"Are you going to tell me who I'm meeting in Zeltoble? Or what's in that egg?" He shot back at her, and she released another amused sound but didn't offer any more comments. Finally at an intersection she stopped, and pointed to the door at the end of the hall.

"Ken no Yuusha-sama, is in that room. I really don't know what he does in there, only that he spends a lot of time inside. If I didn't knew any better, I would say he wants to be left alone…" She commented crossing her arms slightly annoyed.

_Can__'t even find it in me too blame him… With the amount of crap going on, I wish I could do the same sometimes…_

Going forward he stopped at the door before knocking. After a moment a voice that was unmistakable came from the other side.

"Come in…" Ryou opened the door, and leaned against the doorway crossing his arms, eyes meeting the Sword Hero's ones.

"Hi Ren…" Ryou greeted with a happy tone, that borderline on being creepy.

The Sword Hero, eyed him for a moment before shaking his head in confusion

"Ryou?" He half greeted, half asked in hesitation.

Ryou's smile grew a little wider, "Wanna learn a new trick that will make your grinding experience one hundred times smoother ?" He enticed, and was on the receiving end of a very pointed raise eyebrow, yet the Sword Hero motioned for him to enter.

Closing the door behind him, Ryou approached Ren with a smile still on his face, all the while thinking…

_Hook, line, and sinker... Idiots..._

* * *

_Next Chapter - The Power Behind the Heroes..._


	20. The Power Behind The Heroes

**A/N-** Hi Guys, so here I am with the second to last chapter of this Arc, next week will be the last of this Arc, after then there will be no chapter on the following week, since I want to wrap up most of the work for the next arc before starting posting even if its mostly done, but between work, life, and everything, it gets a little hard to be on top of everything so fully expect Chapter 22 to drop on the 13th December.

Since I'm going to take a week off, next Chapter as promised, I will add the List of Bows that as been requested by a few of you, there will also be a small preview of the next arc to get your imagination flowing, though don't expect any big spoilers of course :P

Also there will be a small difference about the Strengthening Methods in this chapter, some of you might notice it, along with a big one, mainly where Ryou is concerned.

Another thing for those interested, in the chapter you will find some concepts about the Strengthening Methods.

** Rarity -** Stands for how Rare the weapon is. C for common, UC for Uncommon, R for rare, and so forth and so on.

**Status -**Stands for the sealed, or awakened form from Ren's System.

**Mastery** \- Stands for the mastery level/Bar also from Ren's System.

**Equipment Bonus - **This as already been showed but essentially the bonuses/abilities Ryou gets when he masters a weapon, take in consideration that this 'mastery' and Ren's one are different things.

**Special Effect - **These are abilities or effects natural to the weapon, and cannot be learned they only come into play when said weapon is equipped.

This probably sound familiar to everyone who read the WN or LN, but I'm only putting it here for simplicity purposes.

Now here we go, where Ryou continues to play the fool to get what he wants, as a small meeting with our favorite Shield Hero, finds out that his weapon is a pretty big troll, and comes to an interesting realization.

* * *

**Chapter 20 The Power Behind The Heroes**

_Closing the door behind him, Ryou approached Ren still with a smile on his face, all the while thinking__…_

_Hook, line, and sinker... Idiots..._

"That's about it. It's a pretty straightforward system. Does that answer all your questions Ryou?" Ren asked, sitting on a wooden chair, both arms and legs crossed.

"Yeah, that's just about everything…" Ryou murmured, trying to keep everything in mind, on the inside though he was cackling.

"Okay, so now I actually have a question of my own. Why were you the only one with access to this type of inventory in the first place?" The Sword Hero questioned, a frown present on his face, and Ryou could almost hear what was going through his mind.

_What__'s so special about you..? _In reality Ryou didn't have an answer to that. He didn't knew why he had a complete _Inventory Ability_, while the other Heroes only had a limited version of it, sans Naofumi who had none to begin with.

Shrugging, Ryou answered honestly, "I don't know, maybe it as something to do with my legendary weapon, I just know it was right there from the start…"

The Sword Hero narrowed his eyes slightly, the frown on his face getting more pronounced, "I didn't have it, however the moment you show me, I get access to it…That's really suspicious…"

_He is sharp... At least more than Motoyasu__…_ Ryou affirmed mentally watching the Sword Hero contemplate that information.

Ren shook his head after a moment, "Another suspicious thing is you giving me access to it, in exchange for mostly worthless, and basic information…"

_Shows what you know, the one who got scammed here was you__…_

"Well, I played some RPG's back on the other side but nothing compared to you, so I'll take everything I can get. Besides helping a fellow hero will insure that the waves go much more smoothly…"

Ren's narrowed eyes changed in a look of almost pity, " That's a really naive outlook you have there Ryou. Knowledge is power here... The fact that you were a casual shows, the inventory is exactly the kind of information you shouldn't give anyone…"

Well the Sword Hero wasn't wrong in one aspect… Knowledge was indeed power… But Ren's perception of it, was inherently different from his own..

"Your saying that but didn't you answer my questions anyway?" Ryou challenged, and the Sword Hero smiled condescendingly, oozing with superiority, a smile that made Ryou remember why exactly he had almost hated Ren in the beginning.

"Like I said, worthless information. Besides I don't care about trading it. Even with it, someone who only played games here and there can never catch up to a pro, that's reality."

The statement had it been true would have sent Ryou off the edge, as it was, it only made it more difficult not to laugh in Ren's face.

_That__'s a challenge if I ever heard one… Well let's see who's running circles around who, in the next wave…_

"We'll see about that." Ryou threw the challenge out there, smirking, one that Ren mimicked before shrugging.

"Have it you.."

Knock… Knock…

"Yumi no Yuusha-sama, Ken no Yuusha-sama, I'm sorry for interrupting but the King requests your presence…" A familiar voice came from the other side of the door however it sounded meek and submissive, a complete contrast to the normal tone Ryou was used to hear from the woman in question.

"Fine…" Ren commented almost irritated.

_Wonder what that douche wants now__…_ Ryou thought, before rising and opening the door. The Shadow Maid, still in her Maid mode was looking at the ground, head bowing.

"Do you know what this is about?" Ryou questioned, while stepping out, the Sword Hero trailing behind.

"Yes, It's time for you to receive the war funds, along with a reward for defeating the wave…" The maid commented, before motion for them to follow.

_Right free money, well more or less, I guess I can endure it for now__…_

* * *

Entering the throne room, Ryou was honestly surprised to see both Motoyasu, and Naofumi there along with Raphtalia by his side.

_Well I guess at least in this, we think alike__…_ Ryou thought, holding a snort at how bored Naofumi looked, or maybe it was a look of pain for being more or less forced to attend to the meeting.

Ryou came to a stop on the left side, next to Naofumi, with Ren coming to a stop between himself, and the Spear Hero.

_Well isn__'t this a telling sight…_ Going from one end of the spectrum to the next, from the most loved to the most hated hero. It wasn't even on purpose.

Naofumi threw him a quick and mostly blank side look, one that Ryou mimic, their gaze meeting for a moment, Raphtalia however sent him a small soft smile, one that almost made Ryou winced. In her mind, she probably thought that Ryou had been the only one to stand up for them, yet in Ryou's own mind that was actually just a big failure, with something he wanted to avoid coming to pass anyways.

Banishing the thought, Ryou looked towards the front. What was done was done there was only forward now…

"Now that we are all here, let me begin by congratulate you all, on your victory against the wave." The King's voice echoed in the room, however Ryou saw Aultcray's' eyes moving coming to a stop on the Spear Hero for a moment.

_How nice, your playing favorites with the guy that's sleeping with your daughter__… Hmm wonder if you know about that…_ In Ryou's mind that was a fact, because he refused to believe Motoyasu went to such lengths for her, without getting any action in return, and he didn't wanted to sound prejudiced, but she definitely looked, and acted the part.

"As a reward for your brave efforts, I shall grant Motoyasu-dono a total of four thousand silver coins…" The Bow Hero almost shook is head, that was an insane amount of money, there was no doubt in his mind that the King was truly playing favorites among all the Heroes.

"...Ren-dono shall receive three thousand, and eight hundred silver coins…" Ren took the bag of money, with a mostly blank look on his face.

"...Ryou-dono will receive two thousand silver coins…" Ryou grab the bag, resisting the smile that almost showed, however his lower lip still twitched a little in humor.

_Ladies, and Gentlemen, there it is! The dreadful, if expected, slap on the wrist__…_ One subtle enough not to arouse suspicion, but direct enough to get the point across, 'If you lay with dogs'...

"…and you Shield, you shall receive no funds since we are discounting the amount from freeing the girl from the slave crest." Ryou sent another side look towards the Shield Hero noticing him clenching his fists, before snarling at the King, however Raphtalia, put a hand on his shoulder and shook her head.

"We have made due up until now, and we will continue to do so, lets leave this place Naofumi-sama…" Naofumi almost argued, however the words didn't came out, finally with a "tsk" he turned around, and went for the exit along with Raphtalia, a stride in his steps.

Ryou was deep in thought watching them go, before coming to a decision…

"Well that's my cue to leave too, have places to be, and things to get done, this world isn't going to save himself after all!" Ryou stated, before also turning around, and going for the exit, stooping when Ren made his own voice heard.

"Pretty big talk… For a casual…" The Sword Hero commented almost casually, but the smirk on his face revealed an hint of mocking, however it quickly turned into a confused frown, when Ryou turned his head and sent him a small smile along with a wink, before exiting the room.

* * *

"Goddammit that Trash King, this was a complete waste of time, I should have never left Lute village!" Naofumi vented, after leaving the gate. Raphtalia, walked next to him her face also showing some anger, however she did not offer any more comment.

"Next time they try to invite me, I'll just tell them to shove it…" Naofumi finished however a voice from behind made him stop.

"Naofumi! Catch!" The Shield Hero turned around, and was greeted to a pouch to the face. Snarling he was about to throw the offensive thing back before he heard a metallic sound from it. Opening he saw countless silver coins inside.

"I don't need your damn charity Ryou…" Naofumi said with a frown, holding out the pouch, however the Bow Hero made no move to take it, hands behind his head in a relaxed manner.

"That's cool because I'm not offering any. Think of this as me paying my debt." Ryou offered, as if commenting on the weather.

"You already did that. You said it yourself back at Lute Village." The Shield Hero argued, yet Ryou shook his head.

"Yeah to you. Now I'm paying my debt to Raphtalia for saving my life, she also played a part. However if you still think of it as charity, then you can pay me back when you can." The bow Hero explained.

Ryou came to the decision of splitting his reward fifty/fifty the moment the King had pulled the rug from under Naofumi. Not only was Ryou not hurting for money since one thousand silver coins were more then enough to cover his and Rishia's expenses, but he could also hunt monsters for more profit especially now that they would drop items, not to mention he was going for the Mithril Mine soon enough.

_Besides its mostly investment, and maybe I want to appease my conscience a little too..._

"Thank you for your generosity, Ryou-sama, and thank you for always being there for us…" Raphtalia offered with a deep bow, and this time Ryou did winced.

" Don't thank me for that…" Ryou almost hissed. He had given Rishia justifications for his actions, and they were pretty logical, however human feelings were not so simple.

"Ryou-sama..?" Raphtalia inquired taken aback, however Naofumi cut them off.

"Its always like this with you…" The Shield Hero muttered before his voice gained in strength, "Goddammit Ryou its always like this with you, just wha… Mphh!" The rest of Naofumi's tirade was cut off by Ryou who had almost slapped his hand against the Shield Hero's mouth.

"Naofumi shut up! This place as ears everywhere!" Ryou hissed. The Bow Hero had a pretty good idea where Naofumi was going with the way he was shouting, and that definitely was not a conversation to have, twenty meters from the Castle gate.

"What do you mean!" Naofumi hissed back in a more hushed tone after slapping the hand covering his mouth.

"Look... Your going back to Lute Village right? Ryou questioned.

"How do you kn…" He was cut off by Ryou yet again.

"I'll meet you there tomorrow, we'll talk then…" The Bow Hero turned around, and walked away his pace slightly faster than normal, leaving behind yet another confused hero.

* * *

"Weren't we going back to visit father, Ryou-sama?" The green haired girl asked, from her spot. She was seated against the wall that surrounded Castle Town, the Mysterious egg besides her.

"We are, but only tomorrow or the day after, it depends…. We're going to meet with Naofumi in Lute Village before that…" Ryou explained, taking a bite of a sandwich that Rishia had made. Darn things were pretty good to, and he was hungry after spending so much time lying through his teeth, and dealing with so much crap.

"Fueee! You met with Naofumi-sama, and Raphtalia-chan?! Were they alright?" She asked, in a fast if slightly worried manner.

"Yeah, they were actually, definitely better than yesterday that's for sure…" He reassured, and Rishia released a breath in relief, her hand resting against her chest. Ryou made a sound that he agreed with the feeling. He had stopped for lunch before hitting the monsters again, he wanted to test out the whole Proficiency System, and monster drops thing.

"Fuee…" Raising an eyebrow at Rishia's normal verbal tick, Ryou looked at her inquisitive wondering was going in her head.

Her attention was on something else, her face thoughtful, before she caught sight of his expression and abandoned whatever thought she was having looking slightly embarrassed.

That only added to his curiosity, and he couldn't help but to ask, "What were you thinking so deeply about just now? You seemed completely out of it…"

Her face flushed a little, before she waved her hands in the air. "I-It was something s-stupid!"

Ryou frowned before replying, "Well I still want to know, unless you really don't want to share…"

She shook her head rapidly before explaining, "I was just wondering if Ryou-sama could use that, since it looks similar to his bow…" She trailed off.

Ryou turned to look at what she was referring to, before catching sight of _it_ and he tilted his head pondering on it.

"That my dear Rishia, is a very good question…" Ryou commented, not even noticing the effect his words had on the girl, before rising himself and moving towards the object.

_I was going to try it anyway, no time like the present I suppose, not sure if it will work on something like this though__…_ Ryou thought, gripping the lever on the object with one hand, before repeating the process on his bow with the other hand and closing his eyes.

_I already believe it, I saw it after all, I probably only need to will it__… Copy it…_ Ryou willed imagining his bow taking the shape of the object besides him. Opening his eyes he saw a yellow light emanating from his hand, and his bow turned into a Ballista, an exact copy of the one on the wall, the only difference being the yellow jewel now on the front.

**[Ballista - Rarity - C - Status - Sealed - Mastery - 0/100 - Equipment Bonus - +5 Attack - Special Effect - A****ttack Bonus (Medium), Penetration Bonus (Small), Movement Speed Penalty (Great), Attack Speed Penalty (Medium)**

Before he could even uttered a word, a literal torrent of spam appeared in his field of vision completely covering his _Status Window_.

**[Copy Weapon now unlocked]**

**[Proficiency now unlocked]**

**[Energy Grant now unlocked]**

**[Rarity now unlocked]**

**[Tempering now unlocked]**

**[Spirit Enhancement now unlocked]**

**[Status Enhancement now unlocked]**

_Holy Shit! _Ryou could only released a gasp at the sheer amount of info that was dumped on him, multiple entries being unlocked on his _Help Menu_. He hadn't meant for this to happen at all, sure he believed in all the upgrade systems, but he thought he had to unlock one by one, but apparently that wasn't the case.

"Ha...Haha...Hahahahahahahahahahahaha!" Ryou started laughing gaining in last time he had been this hyped was back when he had first discovered his Divine Protection...

"Who's the casual now pretty boy!" Ryou almost roared into the skies, shaking his fist towards it.

"Ryou-sama... Is everything alright?" The green haired girl asked hesitantly, before releasing a, "Mep!".

"Rishia, lets go!" Ryou ordered before grabbing the girl by the hand, and pulling her along with him, the girl almost tripping on her feet before righting herself.

"Fueee! S-slow d-down Ryou-s-sama, and your leaving the e-egg behind!" She almost shouted, being pulled along by the Bow hero.

"Oh shit your right!" Ryou shouted startled, before running up the stairs to the wall, and picking up the egg, then he was gone, the green haired girl running after her party leader, who made a beeline towards the exit of Castle Town.

* * *

Once again even if she tried not to, Rishia had to question what was going through the mind of the Legendary hero in front of her. He had told her they were going to visit her father, they also needed to fight stronger monsters, to level up, and for him to unlock new bows. Now she could only look, as he took down anything moving in the vicinity with impunity, like every living being around them had committed an inexcusable crime against him.

"I see so that's how it works…" Ryou commented, watching as the proficiency bar went up a little.

Taking another look around, he noticed that there were no more monsters to found near them and releasing a deep exhale he took a seat besides Rishia. Opening the _Status Window_, he begun working his way through the new entries on the help menu. Even if the other heroes had explained it to him, now that the excitement had died down a little, he couldn't help but to feel an headache coming.

_How the hell did Naofumi keep track of all of this..?_ It was murder to his head, just thinking about everything, and it only became worse because of how much information he needed to keep track of.

Motoyasu main line of upgrades was the most straightforward. Ryou had played _RPG__'s_ with the same upgrade system, it was just a matter of gathering ores, and use them to level up a weapon, there existed however the possibility of failure, one that would revert the weapon back to level zero. According to Motoyasu although some monsters dropped the ores needed, the best way would be to either directly gather them or just straight up buy them. At first sight Ryou had concluded, that unlike what Naofumi had been doing where it paid off to get as many weapons as possible and master them, Motoyasu system was entirely based on picking a small group of weapons and specialize in them.

At the time the first thought Ryou had was that when comparing the two, was that Motoyasu's system while nice, had been far inferior to Naofumi's, if he were to compare them as stand alone systems even if he had the other enhancements to offer further customization. Motoyasu could in theory get a spear with three hundred attack, however if Naofumi unlocked one hundred shield's with plus three attack, or defense, then at the end of the day the Shield Hero would be in a far better position, because regardless of what shield he used, he would always have those stats giving him far more freedom on what to use, even if it would take much more time to unlock such a number of shields.

It had been so inferior in Ryou's mind, that he couldn't help but to ask Motoyasu, if there wasn't something in his system that allowed him to stack up stats or bonuses. To his slight surprise Motoyasu had indeed confirmed there was such a such, although he mostly ignored it for how small the boost was. Ryou however had all but pounced on it the moment he heard it, finding such a notion as idiotic, as the one who had thought about it.

As it turned out while tempering weapons, once you reached a certain level, they would add a straight passive bonus to one's stats, the bonus would then increase at certain milestones. That had destroyed his notion about Motoyasu system being one that focused only on specialization, it wasn't, not completely at least. The best way to go about it was- Yes specialize in a couple of weapons, but he should also go out of his way to temper others, maybe with lower level ores just to inflate some of his numbers.

Ren's system had also been interesting if also very straightforward, so much so that Ryou actually had to ask himself what kind of games did the Sword Hero play on the other side.

_Calling me a casual, and then turns out that the way he upgrades his weapon is the most casual, grinddy thing ever__…_

Ren's main line of upgrading was a mastery based method, one that increase the proficiency of a weapon with usage, also increasing its stats. Apparently one could also awaken a weapon once mastery reached level one hundred, this process would unlock new hidden skills, and would convert those levels into energy points. The awakening process was the deepest part of Ren's system, since it not only took time to reach full mastery in order to awaken, but one could never be sure what skills would appear from the process, even crappy weapons could have amazing abilities hidden in them, and that presented a problem.

_With so many bows that I already have at my disposal, awakening them would take forever, and that__'s not even counting the ones I will acquire from this point forward, so I guess I just have to go with my gut on what to awaken…_

Energy grant, was basically a currency system that used energy points, the points gained from resetting a weapon's mastery, these points could then be used to raise the rarity of a specific weapon, increasing once again its overall stats. Energy points could also be acquired by converting the items that dropped from monsters into them.

With an huff Ryou let himself fall back on the grass, looking at the blue sky above him, his thoughts wandering. There existed a lot of power to be gained with these systems, but there was a lot to learn too while really simple, when put together the entire thing was incredibly complex, and allowed for a lot of customization.

_But it__'s only normal that its like that, since it's just a mix of different game mechanics, but when put together…_

"Fufufu, unlimited power…" Ryou uttered in amusement quoting Emperor Palpatine. It probably was… Mastering all the bows in the tree would take years, maybe even decades if Ryou didn't focused on just that, and that was just using Naofumi's way. If one was to try to shoot for one hundred completion if such a thing was even possible, then it would probably take more than ones life expectancy, so as far as they were concerned the legendary weapons offered limitless progression.

"I-I think Ryou-sama as finally lost it this time, don't you think so?" Ryou almost looked affronted when he heard it, before noticing the girl had been addressing the egg.

"Fuee! Ryou-sama..?!" The girl questioned with a slightly higher pitch, confused. The hero had shoved her lightly in the shoulder, and she had swayed a little before righting herself.

"Hmm... Calling me crazy are you?" He huffed, before sending her a small smile"...Want me to explain what's going on?" He asked, and her gaze lowered but she bobbed her head.

"Let me explain then…" Ryou begun, turning to face her, and crossing his legs, "... You know how I use materials to unlock new bows, right?" She nodded again. With a focused look Ryou opened his Bow Tree, and showed her. Rishia couldn't help but to feel amazed at the sheer amount of bows displayed there.

"This… Is the basis for Naofumi's upgrade system… Every Hero as an upgrade system or Strengthening Method granted by the Legendary weapons that lets them strengthen their weapons and themselves. However any Hero, can learn to use the other's upgrade system. I already knew how Naofumi's worked, but I didn't knew about Ren's, or Motoyasu's." Ryou explained, and something click in the girl's head.

"I-Is that why you went to speak with them?" She asked, and Ryou confirmed that had been the case.

"Yes… Focusing on only one system is however the wrong way to go about it. You certainly noticed that I'm slowly getting stronger right?" Rishia nodded at that, she had been present when the hero unlocked a new weapon, and she couldn't help but to marvel at how each one increased his power a little bit every time.

"Well believe it or not, I'm actually much stronger now then I was when I started, and this is only using one system… Now that I have all of them, my potential to grow will increase by a lot more, probably two fold or even higher than that." Rishia let out her verbal tick in an amazed manner, however the girl realized she shouldn't feel surprised, there existed a reason why the Heroes were called Legendary, and tales of their strength reached the four corners of the world.

" I understand now, Ryou-sama went to trade information on this upgrade system with the other heroes…" Ryou looked sheepish averting her gaze, while rubbing his neck.

"Well, not exactly…" He trailed off, earning him an inquisitive look.

"I might have fooled them, into giving it to me…" He admitted, and the girl released a tired sigh.

"I'm starting to think that Raphtalia-chan is right…" She mumbled, however the words did reach his ears, and the Bow Hero couldn't help but to wonder if Naofumi had any idea that, their party members were talking about them behind their back.

"Why couldn't you trade them, why go about it in such a way..?" She asked after a moment, and Ryou decided to explain himself.

"Because I don't want them to know…" He raised his hand, stopping the interruption he saw coming, "...Rishia, I might share it with them in the future, but that will be somewhere very down the line. There is a lot of power to gain from this knowledge, and I don't trust them to use it with responsibility."

"But the waves…" Ryou's face turned a little sad at that, knowing she was mentioning their conversation from the night before.

"I know, and I agree with your point of view… The waves are the enemy, however I believe that me, and the other Heroes will come to trade blows, and butt heads before we can actually present an united front…" If such a thing would even be possible.

"More fighting between the heroes…" She managed to sound both depressed, and exasperated, and Ryou couldn't help but to mirror her feelings about the whole thing.

"More than likely yes... I would like to avoid it, but it might not be possible…" Ryou muttered.

_Not with them being idiots, and believing this world is their playground, like children..._

"Motoyasu is an idiot… He is more likely to cause trouble then he is to solve it, but for now he is manageable, that might not be the case if he gets a lot stronger though… You saw what happened in the castle, the guy just doesn't listen…" Ryou released a breath, before continuing voicing his thoughts, "Ren's sharper than Motoyasu, the problem is that he doesn't care about anything as long as he is allowed to do what he pleases, and that way of thinking is just asking for trouble…"

Not only that, but if a fight emerged Ryou had no doubt the Sword Hero would align with the King, he was the one supporting him after all.

"What about Naofumi-sama..?" Rishia asked. The girl knew that Ryou favored Naofumi over the other heroes.

_What about Naofumi indeed__…_ Ryou questioned mentally before pondering on the entire thing. Of all heroes Naofumi was the only one he could actually give the information to, and trust it not to bite him in the ass. However Ryou couldn't help but to feel like he shouldn't. He had went to a lot of trouble to get this information even playing the fool, and to just handed over like that left an empty feeling inside, that made him wonder if it was just his own pride speaking.

_Knowledge is power__…_ Ren had been right about that, yet Ryou almost felt disgusted with himself, because that line of thought was almost similar to the other heroes, and that had been the reason why they were as weak as they were in canon.

However there was another reason why Ryou didn't want to share it with Naofumi at least so soon, and this one actually had logic behind it.

_The Shield of Wrath__…_ It was another common thing in a lot of stories. The dark yet overpowered mechanic that would rise to the surface every time the Main Character was in over his head. Naofumi having access to it would be a good safety net during the waves.

_With access to every upgrade system, I want to try and at the very least be able to match Glass during the next wave, however I might not be able to__…_ Glass had been truly overpowering when she first made her appearance, and there was no proof that her strength was still the same, so Naofumi, and the Shield of Wrath were his insurance.

Another thought crossed his mind. the Bow Hero wasn't sure if that kind of shield was unique only to Naofumi, but everything pointed towards the contrary and that was an ominous thing in his mind.

_Every time Naofumi used it, it almost looked like he was being possessed.._. Ryou liked his ability to think straight, and make rational decisions, so he wanted to stay clear of that kind of cursed power, even if a small part of him found it enticing, before shaking his head.

_It took Naofumi to think he lost Filo to get angry enough to unlock the damn thing, though he pretty much raised the little rascal from birth, and he hardly had enough people who would stay by his side, losing one was no doubt an horrible experience__…_ Ryou took a peek at the girl beside him, who was still waiting for him to reach a decision. He couldn't even stomach the thought of losing Rishia, just as Naofumi couldn't accept the thought of losing Filo, no matter for how brief of a time he had her with him.

In that particular moment, lightning struck inside Ryou's head, making the hero jump to his feet.

"Ohh my god! I'm an absolute idiot!" Ryou threw his hands on his face, remembering a very important detail. Naofumi had gotten Filo when he went to replace the slave seal on Raphtalia, and Ryou had almost blew the entire thing.

"R-Ryou-sama?" She asked hesitantly, however the bow hero offered no answer, to busy chastising himself.

_No Filo! No Shield of Wrath! No canon!_ Ryou had already accepted the fact things were different, and would change, but for now everything still appeared to be going more or less according to the story, and he still wanted to maintain the time line as close as possible, to get full advantage of his foreknowledge.

_I almost screw Naofumi over big time, and shot myself in the foot at the same time!_ There was no certainty that the Shield Hero would survive until the Queen arrived if he didn't have Filo with him. Ryou had tried to do right by him, and Raphtalia, although there as a small part of him that just wanted to screw with Malty, and Aultcray.

"Road to hell is paved with good intentions indeed, learn to heed your own advice once in a while won't you, Ryou!" The bow hero reproached himself, before forcing to calm himself. Like before what was done was done, hopefully things would stay the same more or less and Naofumi would use the money he had gave them, to put the seal on Raphtalia, and would still buy a egg, if not then, he would have to think of a way to do some damage control.

"I'll tell Naofumi about it…" Ryou finally allowed, and Rishia sent him an approving smile, however Ryou wasn't finished. "...but I'll probably only do it, after the next wave…" Once again Ryou stopped Rishia from interrupting, already knowing what she was about to ask, "...I have my reasons to do so Rishia, honestly Naofumi is the only one I actually trust to use everything with responsibility, but just trust me on this, okay?" She looked a little confused before conceding.

"I know that R-Ryou-sama cares about them, and I know you wouldn't chose to wait without a reason, after all Ryou-sama is always thinking about everything, and p-plotting." Ryou for his part was grateful to her for understanding and leaving it at that, however he couldn't help but to realize another thing from what she had said.

"Sorry about that. It's not like I'm ignoring you, it's just that I lived alone for a while, so I spent a lot of time with just my thoughts, apparently that's still a bad habit of mine, to just zone out, and let my mind go to places…" Ryou apologized slightly embarrassed, and once again Rishia took no offense, having spent some time with the Bow Hero she had come to understand it was indeed an habit of his.

Tomorrow they would met Naofumi, and hopefully he would confirm if he had bought a Filorial egg, and after the next wave he would also confirm if Naofumi had access to the Shield of Wrath. Immediately after the wave would be a pretty safe period to share information with the Shield Hero, time-line wise, it would also give Naofumi some time to power up, and hopefully that would make the fight against the Pope go more smoothly...

_Seems like I have a plan if everything goes according to the time-line, but we__'ll see, if worse comes to worse I'll just have to improvise…_ It was his partner that brought him back to reality.

"Ryou-sama can I ask you a question..?" Ryou raised an eyebrow wondering why she was even asking permission, before voicing it.

"Rishia, you don't need to ask permission to ask a question, I'm not some tyrant, I told you already we're partners…" The girl almost looked smaller then she was, but still sent him a shy smile at the wording, before collecting herself.

"I-If R-Ryou-sama is using N-Naofumi-sama's system, then what does your s-system entail?" Ryou opened his mouth, thinking for a second before closing. It was the same as Naofumi, because there had been no notice, and it had been the one he knew better after all.

_Wait a minute__… If that's actually the case, doesn't that mean that just by existing I removed an entire layer of power?_ Ryou questioned in apprehension. By replacing Itsuki had he made it so that the Bow Hero's upgrade system was just a copy of another one?

Shaking his head now understanding the situation Ryou refused to acknowledge such a thing.

_The Legendary Weapons are based on the power of belief, Naofumi said so, and I have already proven it__… If that's indeed the case then I should be able to add something if I believe in it enough!_ Ryou concluded determined, before closing his eyes, and focused on a game that he used to play, and was most familiar with. He tried to picture what he wanted, and then just like the copy system he tried to will it into reality. Not even a second later a sound broke his line of thought, and forced him to open his eyes.

_Thwing!_

Ryou surveyed his _Status Window_ with a blank look on his face, though his fingers did twitch a little… He knew he should be happy, he knew he should be jumping in joy but he couldn't help himself.

"Fuck you! You goddamn trolling piece of shit!" Ryou raged, ripping of the bracelet in his arm, and throwing it off into the distance, sailing over the trees, after a moment it just reappeared in his wrist as if mocking him.

"Fuee Ryou-sama you can't treat a Legendary Weapon like that!" Rishia screech horrified.

Ryou turned to glare at the offensive object in his arm, "Legendary piece of crap is what this thing is!"

Ryou wasn't really sure, he had no basis for it, but somewhere deep down he knew that there was sentience in his weapon, and it was laughing its ass off at him, he just knew it, he feel it deep inside.

Taking a deep breath. he look again towards the _Status Window_.

**[Passive Skill Tree now unlocked]**

"Apparently my own upgrading system is a passive skill tree of all things." Ryou muttered before opening his Help Menu on the new entry. After a quickly look, he just let out a sigh.

_This would have been nice to have before, Ohh I don__'t know?! I almost gotten eat by wolves! Though thinking about it, this one is really because I'm an idiot who never considered it to be this easy to unlock... _Ryou conceded. Apparently he got one skill point per level, and his Strengthening Method also intercepted with Ren's since he could also convert energy points into skill points, though the cost would go up every five points, starting at one thousand energy points each.

"Lets see if it is exactly what, I think it is…" Ryou muttered, throwing a side glance at Rishia who was sitting now right next to him, apparently the girl was also curious about it.

"It doesn't really look like a tree…" His partner commented much to his amusement even if that observation had been pretty accurate.

"It's mostly because of these lines between every icon, they are supposedly like branches, and the entire thing branches off…" He explained to her. The girl in question just hummed in understanding, before pointing to an icon.

"W-What are these little circles with the weird s-symbols where t-the 'branches' converge?" Ryou focused his attention on the one Rishia had pointed at, an the little node expanded.

**[Attack Speed with Bows Increased by 2%]**

"These are nodes, they increase a lot of things, from Agility, to my Health, even Magic and Spirit Points regeneration, this one in particular increases my Attack Speed as you can see…" Ryou explained, and she looked in awe at the system.

"Fuee! But there are so many of them!" She said, leaning a little back to have them all in her field of vision.

"I told you didn't I? There's an amazing amount of power behind these systems, and this is just one of many…" Ryou concluded. He then noticed the zoom out icon at the corner, and he focused his attention on it. The tree, zoomed out, and zoomed out some more… He heard a gasp from Rishia, and by the time it stopped zooming out, Ryou was left looking at the colossal monster in front of him in astonishment.

_Isn__'t this way bigger then the original? Like a hundred times bigger?_

Another think caught his attention, in the middle there were four images inside big circles, like hieroglyphs carved in stone. The one he had focused before had a bow, but the rest of the Legendary weapons were there too as starting points, but no path ever touched another, meaning that no hero could access the nodes from another. There were also other smaller circles between the four big ones, two between each, and these ones shared the same initial path as the heroes, eight in total, but six of them were blank.

"Is that a wagon?" Ryou asked confused, crossing his arms, and tilting his head from side to side. His attention was on the image of one of the smaller circles between the bow and shield image, though this one was closer to the shield.

"It looks like a carriage..." Rishia murmured, squinting her eyes at the small image. .

"Why is there an image of a carriage in here of all things?" He wondered out loud, before shaking his head, and focusing on the one right next to the carriage, and closer to the bow. The image while not blank, was flickering for some reason, and he tried to make out what was in it.

_Is that a knife..? No, its a kunai isn't it..?_ He realized. Ryou couldn't understand the meaning of what he was seeing. He knew what the big circles represented, it showed his, and the other heroes starting points, but he had no idea what the other smaller circles were, or why one of them was flickering.

Deciding it wasn't worth pondering on at the moment, he focused on the Shield Image, and began to go through the nodes that branched from it.

_Defense, defense, defense, more defense__… Ohh look this one increases Health Points… Heh this is going to be Naofumi's starting point, no doubt about it…_ He concluded amused, before continuing going through the rest of the nodes, and a few clusters randomly.

"This has everything here!" Ryou exclaimed after a minute. From boosting ones Defense, to Attack, or Agility. If he wanted to focus on Magic, there were clusters for it, so were there some that increased Elemental Damage, and Defense, even Medicine effectiveness and Healing, along with Support Magic upgrades. There were also some that were grayed out, and couldn't be read, showing only a message that he didn't possess the knowledge required to access those nodes. That wasn't the only thing he discovered though.

_This thing is really made from belief__…_ The Bow Hero acknowledged, because why else would there be a few clusters that increased slaves parameters near Naofumi's starting point.

Focusing back on his own path, and going through his nodes he expanded one that made him take a glance at Rishia, before lowering his head, a soft smile appearing on his face hidden from view.

**[Party Members Magic Attribute Increased by 2%]**

_Guess its to be expected, I do want her to grow strong, and I guess this in some ways reflects what's in my heart__…_ There were a few more clusters full of nodes like that, just like Naofumi Slave One's, however there were none that concerned party members near Motoyasu's, or Ren's starting points.

"I-Its strange..." The green haired girl commented after a moment, with a weirdly serious expression on her face.

"What is?" Ryou questioned confused, wondering were she was having difficulty following.

"Its just… I can't read it, but I can understand the numbers, and that last symbol… That's percentages, everything is in percentages…" She explained, and Ryou took another look at a few of the nodes before realizing he had missed that particular fact.

_She__'s right! This crap is not about status increase, its a goddamn multiplier for base stats! _The realization made the Bow Hero lean back in shock. It served to multiply status, attributes and everything in between. It almost looked overpowered, if it wasn't for the fact that the percentages were really low, and the cost for skill points would go up every five.

_No, not overpowered, but its definitely far more useful in mine, and Naofumi's hands then in the other's possession that's for sure.._. It was then that the Bow Hero felt a shiver coursing his body.

_Increasing your base stats, and gaining skills by mastering different weapons already makes a really big difference, in two weeks I went from being a munching toy for Dire wolves, to completely overpower them, and if that__'s the case then…_ He wondered just how strong would he become, especially when you could add so many layers of power on top of each other, an those were only the ones he knew about.

_In some countries we are herald as gods__… I thought it was an exaggeration but now…_ Ryou knew that the Legendary Heroes were symbols of power, the Shadow Maid had said so herself. Obviously it wasn't just because they were Heroes, but because of the potential they all possessed as wielders of a Legendary weapon.

An Image of Naofumi blocking an attack from Glass after she got power up by what he now knew was a potion called the Soul-Healing Water came to mind, an attack that had split the sea in two. Ryou had seen, back in his old world as Naofumi went from a loser, to someone that could stop such an attack. The entire thing lost some impact because even if he disagreed with the other heroes, defense was hardly something one could call flashy, even if it was extremely important. Now though, he realized that somewhere down the line, it would be very likely that he would be the one splitting the sea in two.

_And someone decided that the best people to use such insane powers, were a teenager with attitude problems, a guy that wanted to play white knight and build an harem, a anti-social guy with the subtlety of a bulldozer, and the laziest bastard around who is prone to over-think everything__… Brilliant!_ Shaking his head at the idiocy of it all, he focused once again on his _Status Window_.

_Wait a goddamn second!_ Ryou glared at his own Legendary Weapon once again when another thought reached him.

_Bow and Shield__… One attacks, the other defends… Even the way we upgrade things complement themselves… One focuses on increasing your stats by a straight flat amount, and the other one multiplies it… Like a match made in goddamn heaven, isn't it..?_

* * *

**Side Note - **The Passive Skill Tree that Ryou unlocked, is based on the one found on Path of Exile, so even if you never played the game, you can just google it, and have a pretty good idea of what it is about.

* * *

_Next Chapter: Two Heroes_


	21. Two Heroes

**A/N - **So here I am. I forgot to mention that the chapter would hit a day sooner since tomorrow is black Friday, and I'm going shopping for a new Laptop, since mine dies a couple of months ago.

That aside, here is the last chapter of this arc, as mentioned before next week there will be no chapter since I want to finish the drafts for the next arc at least. Also at the end of this chapter there is a list of Ryou's bows as requested, as long as a sneak peak to some dialogue in the next arc.

Where the mysterious egg, just gets more mysterious, some mysteries are answered, and Ryou and Naofumi finally have their long awaited conversation...

* * *

_**Chapter 21. Wave of Calamity: Two Heroes**_

_Bow and Shield__… One attacks, the other defends… Even the way we upgrade things complement themselves… One focuses on increasing your stats by a straight flat amount, and the other one multiplies it… Like a match made in goddamn heaven, isn't it..?_

Night fell far faster then he had expected, however Ryou had all but lost himself studying the other heroes Strengthening methods. He used the opportunity to try, and explain the whole thing to Rishia, who surprisingly enough, for someone who never even knew what an _RPG_ was, understood the basics of it.

Ryou had also made one last trip to Castle Town. He needed a way to keep track of everything, he was always an extremely organized person when it came to games, and now it was paying off in real life. The solution? Blank Books, lots of them along with a pen and enough ink to last a decade.

It might be a little nerdy, but if it helped, then it was worth doing… Ryou had decided to camp halfway to Lute Village, having no intention on staying even one more day in Castle Town.

Just because the Church hasn't tried anything, doesn't mean I should give them the opportunity… Ryou pondered, taking a bite of a Usapil Roasted Leg. For monster meat it was pretty good, although that could also be attributed to the seasoning. Being the country girl she was, Rishia could identify all kinds of plants, better than he could even with the support of a passive skill.

Between the two, cooking wasn't that much of a chore, and there was something nice about being able to cook alongside someone. But maybe that was just the two years of loneliness he had lived in the past, showing.

Finishing eating, they cleaned up, and went to bed, tomorrow would be a long day after all. Another thing that stumped Ryou about his partner, had been her insistence on not requiring a tent for herself. He had offered, after all Rishia had the right to her privacy, and the tents weren't all that expensive. However she had stated being fine with the current arrangement. Ryou had asked two more times, just to make sure it wasn't her humbleness speaking, but she stayed firmed in her decision, so the Bow Hero had given up with a shrug. He didn't care much for privacy. never had, and if Rishia didn't care either then it was all good. Maybe deep down, he might also be pleased with the arrangement, not that he would ever admit such a thing neither to the girl or to anyone else for that matter. Once again it was probably the years of loneliness speaking.

In the past, whenever the silence, and memories got to much for him he would visit his little sister, and try to spend the day with her, although with her having classes, and him having his own job it had been hard for both of them to have free time. So he would just hit the bar, and sometimes come home with company, even if such a thing had been very rare to begin with, but at least there was someone else there, even if the feelings were nothing but a facade that would dissolve itself the next morning.

With Rishia… It was nothing of the sort, it was pure company, and thrust. Having someone who had his back, and would stand by him, made the burden on his shoulders just a little bit lighter, and Ryou could allow himself to truly let down his guard. No need for fake pleasantries, no need for manipulations, or plays… He could just be himself and rest, knowing he wasn't alone, not anymore.

_Maybe that's exactly why she also didn't want the tent…_ Ryou considered taking a peek at the sleeping girl besides him, her soft breaths almost inaudible even in the silence of the night. Maybe Rishia also shared those feelings, although seventeen years old, she was still half a country away from her father, and from everything she knew. The green haired girl was just as alone as he was, and very much in the middle of the same war.

* * *

"Fueee... Ryou-sama wake up…" Ryou heard the whisper, but it sounded like it was coming from the end of a tunnel, along with something shaking his shoulder slightly.

"Huhhh" He groaned, before opening his eyes, still mostly unfocused, yet it still registered that his in field of vision was filled with green.

"Please look at the egg!" She exclaimed in a higher tone.

Egg… what..? Ryou wondered, his thought process still failing him. Closing his eyes he stretched himself.

"Is it hatching?" The Bow Hero asked, voice heavy with sleep.

"Fueee… I don't know!" He opened his eyes again before furrowing them in confusion .

"Don't know? What do you mean you don't know?" Ryou questioned annoyed, not at her in particular but at having his sleep disturbed.

_Isn't it kind of obvious when a egg is hatching?_ Raising himself halfway he took a peek at the egg, however he quickly came to a complete stop when his eyes found it or whatever it had turned into.

Ryou blinked, then rubbed his eyes with a little more force than necessary.

_Yup still there, and I'm actually awake__…_

"Rishia… What kind of seasoning did you put in the food yesterday..? Because I'm ninety-nine percent sure I'm tripping balls…" Ryou questioned wide eyed, because what he was currently seeing could only be attributed to the effects of hallucinogenics.

"Fuee? T-Tripping on w-what? I-I only put normal s-seasoning herbs…" Her voice sounded confused, an Ryou slapped his face with both of his hands.

_What the actual fuck__… What kind of egg did that psycho maid gave me?_ Ryou was having a hard time understanding what he was seeing. The first difference, was that it had changed size, hardly fitting in the glass container. If before it was the size of what he assumed was an ostrich egg, now it was three times as big, and that was the least weird of all the changes. The egg had been pure white before, now it was completely pitch black, like staring into the abyss if not for the strange light formations in all kinds of colors that twisted, and twirled in it.

Peering closer, Ryou watch as one particular light formation, curled on itself, turning into a spiral.

_It almost looks like looking at the night sky with galaxies, and stars_… It wasn't that far off, it looked like a picture taken from the Hubble, only both in motion, and in three dimensions on an oval shape.

"Okay, you had my curiosity, now you have my full attention… Rishia please tell me you know something about this?" Ryou almost pleaded, but to his disappointment, she shook her head, looking just as lost as he was feeling.

"I know monsters raised by a hero sometimes turned different, at least that's what I heard back in Faubley, but I didn't knew even eggs changed form…" She explained. It had been common knowledge back there at least, there were stories of a hero that raised monsters, that turned different, and much more powerful than normal ones.

_That__'s because they don't as far as I'm aware…_ His memory of the whole thing was spotty at best, but Ryou could almost swear Filo's egg had remained the same until it hatched.

_Actually the only thing truly strange about Filo was how much she grew, and that she could use transformation magic right off the bat__…_ But Filo had been a Filorial Queen, and according to Fitoria, that happened because it was a Hero who raised her, however if what Rishia said rung true, then it wasn't just Filo, but any monster raised by a Hero would turn out different then it should.

_But I can__'t assume the changes are because of it, since I don't know what kind of egg it is to begin with…_ Ryou concluded, there was still a lot he didn't knew about the way the world worked, foreknowledge could only go so far.

"Rishia, from now on if this thing so much as twitches, I want to know, will take turns watching it, even at night, the moment it hatches I want to be present." Ryou declared. He had no idea what creature would come out of it, but whatever it was, it definitely wasn't a filorial, it probably wasn't even anything resembling normal.

"Okay Ryou-sama…" The girl agreed easily, eyes lock on the egg, then she frowned tilting her had to the egg.

"Fuee… T-There's actually another thing that's strange…" Rishia commented lightly.

"What?" Ryou questioned, shifting his gaze towards the girl, who was biting her lip lightly.

"I-I didn't sense it before, b-but its drawing magic into itself…" She explained hesitantly.

Ryou frowned, "Drawing magic? From where?"

Turning to him still confused, her answer only added to the mystery, "F-From everywhere around us…"

Ryou looked around but didn't noticed or sensed anything out of the ordinary, before setting his eyes back on the girl.

"There's magic in the environment?" The Bow Hero asked a slight tone of wonder in his voice.

"Y-Yes, everything has magic, something like the air has small amounts, and something like metal, and gems have more, but normally since its just there you can't sense it…"

Ryou hummed in thought, it actually made some sense, it was like Natural energy from another anime he had watch, everything had energy but it was incredibly hard to sense. The reason Rishia could now sense it was probably because of instead of just being there, it was moving. Turning to look at the strange egg in question Ryou couldn't help but to wonder.

_Is it using magic from the ambient as a catalyst to help it grow?_ Ryou wondered also watching the egg. The light formations twisting slowly, and gently in it, almost in a relax manner, yet he couldn't stop the uneasiness from forming in the pit of his stomach.

_Part of me is extremely curious, but I can't help but fell a little uneasy…Just what is this thing?_

* * *

Lute village looked even more alive now then when he had left. The villagers were hastily trying to bring the small village back to its feet.

After finding the leader of the village, and inquiring him, Ryou went to track down the Shield Hero however he was stopped by his partner on the way.

"Fueee, Ryou-sama look at that! Isn't that..?" Rishia trailed off, and Ryou turned to take a look at what his party member was talking about. It only took a moment to find what she was mentioning, and his eyebrows went up disappearing behind his fringe at the sight.

Is that what I think it is..? The Bow Hero wondered, before turning to a passing villager.

"Excuse me, but can you tell me what that is?" Ryou questioned, bringing the young man to a stop, his eyes widening after realizing who was adressing him, before he recollected himself.

"Yuusha-sama, good morning! As for what that is... That is the body of the Chimera your fellow hero's defeated in the forest." The man explained, and Ryou felt his eyebrow twitch slightly.

I figured it was, so there was truly two of them… However no matter how you look at this…

"I-its much smaller… The other one was a lot bigger, and intimidating!" Rishia exclaimed.

The awe in her voice, broke Ryou of his thoughts, and he turned to his partner with a very pointed raised eyebrow, the Bow Hero raised his index finger in the air, and opened his mouth to speak, then thought about the situation for a second, before lowering his hand, his mouth closing with it.

Sometimes my mind just goes straight into the gutter, doesn't it… You should feel bad Ryou, bad and ashamed, because this is Rishia we are talking about here, she will never understand the possible double meaning those words can have… Ryou concluded with a sigh, before returning to observe the much smaller Chimera, that was only missing its heads, and after a few seconds he clicked his tongue in annoyance.

"Seriously, that's the boss they fought? Ours was the size of a goddamn truck, and theirs was the size of a lion? I really have to start calling bullshit on this stuff... Even I could have taken this small thing on my own!I" Ryou ranted, ending on a sarcastic tone, before his eyes found the blue sky above.

"It really is smaller…But maybe it was still as strong, s-sometime size doesn't matter…" Rishia came to explained, and Ryou continued to eye the sky for a moment.

"Rishia?" Ryou call her out, his voice sounding tired.

"Y-Yes?" The green haired girl questioned, turning to look at the Bow Hero who's eyes were still locked on the sky.

"Please be quiet for a minute…" Ryou ordered, although it almost sounded like a plea.

"Fueee?!"

* * *

After the brief stop to observe the other wave boss orr what was left of it, Ryou finally found Naofumi on the outskirts of the village, seated on the ground, apparently having some kind of debate with Raphtalia. As he approached them, their voices began to reach his ears.

"Naofumi-sama they are not plants, they don't need sun to grow, and I doubt they can hear you…" Raphtalia argued, and Ryou couldn't help but to notice the way her tail waved slowly back, and forth.

"Of course they do. Don't you know that if you leave something in captivity, and in isolation it grows up to be a sociopath?" The Shield Hero explained in a matter-of fact tone, one that made Ryou introduce his palm to his face, especially after seeing the way Raphtalia stiffened slightly.

Nice Naofumi, great job poking it where it hurts... For a guy that can see the bigger picture you can still be surprisingly dense... Ryou concluded mentally, deciding to intervene before the Shield Hero did anymore damage.

"Dude, just what kind of crap were you into back in your world..?" The Bow Hero wondered out loud, gaining the attention of both.

"Haa! Hello Ryou-sama, Rishia-chan!" Raphtalia greeted them, and it was clear whatever previous thoughts she had been having, were gone now. Ryou just waved lazily at her, and Rishia return the greeting with a little bit more enthusiasm.

"Ryou, so you did come…" Naofumi commented lowly, receiving a raised eyebrow in return.

"You sound surprised..." Ryou pointed out.

"Well with the way you left yesterday, I wasn't sure you would keep your word." The Bow Hero shrugged, looking slightly to the side.

"Sorry if I wanted to avoid gather more attention, especially since we were like twenty meters from the Castle. With the way you were shouting, I wouldn't be surprised if Aultcray, and Malty heard you all the way back from the throne room…"

Naofumi almost bristled at the mention of his arch nemesis, "I doubt that the Whore, and the Trash King would have bothered, they were probably too busy laughing at my expense."

Ryou eyed his fellow hero for a moment, a frown morphing in his face, before releasing a breath, "You know… That kind of thinking is one of the causes for the situation you are in right now.."

"Huh?"

At the confusion showing in the Shield Hero's face, Ryou took another moment to collect his thoughts, before voicing them, "Look... I really need to get this thing off my chest… You, Motoyasu, and Ren... You three are complete and utter idiots!"

"What?! Don't put me on the same level as those bastards!" The Shield Hero shot back, however Ryou wasn't having any of that.

"Ohh don't you even start with me! You might have changed. The you right now is not that bad... But the you that came to this world?! That one was a complete moron!" Ryou exclaimed with some heat. This was something he definitely had to address.

"The hell do you mean by that Ryou?" Naofumi was both lost, and slightly pissed at the accusation. Rishia, and Raphtalia just looked at was unfolding with apprehension.

"Look, you said you were summoned when you were reading some book, right?" Ryou asked, prompting a small nod from Naofumi.

"Did you asked to be summoned to this world?" The Shield Hero almost threw his hands in the air, stopping mid movement however he still voiced his feelings.

"Of course not! What kind of stupid question is that!" The Bow Hero however continued his rant.

"A simple one, and that's a no than… So what you're saying is that you were taken from a place to another without consent… I don't know about you, but in my book that sounds like the legal definition of kidnapping, so that's one." Ryou stated raising one finger in the air, after a moment he raised a second one.

"Then the first thing we were asked to do if you remember, was to fight the Waves of Calamity… No matter how pretty it was worded, there was no point in them asking! It was all freaking smoke and mirrors, because we either get summoned to fight them or we will eventually perish along with this world… So we have to fight a war even against our makes it two." Ryou went to continue however he was interrupted by Naofumi who was already reaching the limit of his patience.

"Is there a point to all of this? Did you only come here to rant about the past?" The Shield Hero hissed, and Ryou cut the air in front of him with is hand.

"Ohh no you don't! You people like to do all the ranting, and are always interrupting me, so now its my turn to rant!" Before Naofumi could respond he continued, "I could almost hear your thoughts back then, 'Ohh we were summoned to be heroes, we will be going on adventures, fight monsters, and have our own personal harem of cute girls!" Ryou exclaimed in a high pitch, looking towards the sky with a demure expression before turning serious the next second, "Right?"

"What was I supposed to think in such a setting!" This time the Shield Hero did end up throwing his hands into the air in exasperation.

"Ohh I don't know, maybe be suspicious! The moment I heard that, my instincts went haywire, because you know Naofumi, when something sounds too good to be true you should always be suspicious…"

Taking a deep breath Ryou calmed himself, the last thing on his mind was bashing the Shield Hero. "Look... Between that, and everyone even the King singling you out, you should have start questioning why it was happening..."

—

"I did, I thought it was because I was the Shield Hero, the most useless class…" Naofumi mumbled, his eyes narrowed. It became obvious then that the Shield Hero had also no intentions of starting something.

Taking a seat on the ground, Ryou continued to try and get his point across. " I don't really get why you people came up with this notion that the Shield is useless, because whoever heard of running high-end content in _MMORPG__'s_ without dedicated _Tanks_..? Whatever, that's a plausible theory if you go by everyone's opinion I suppose, however as you now know that wasn't the reason at all. You're biggest mistake though, was lowering your guard the moment Malty started rubbing her breasts on your arm…" Ryou took note of the gasp, and side glance that Raphtalia sent her Master.

Naofumi's face changed instantly into a mixture of indignation, and disgust, "That's not… That didn't…"

"Don't bother, I was there, Naofumi, I saw it…" Ryou stated, before continuing, "...In hindsight it was almost beautiful in a really fucked up way, the manner in which you were set up to fall. However you can't deny you might as well have taken a seat on their lap, asking to be spanked…" Ryou watched the Shield Hero deflate, he wasn't stuoid so he knew he had been incredibly naive back then.

Ryou took a quick look at his party member. Rishia looked worried, if a little flushed, and the Bow Hero just sent her a small smile to reassure her.

"Do you know why, I didn't accept any party members back then?" Ryou questioned eyes moving back to Naofumi, his voice breaking him out of his thoughts.

"You said that you liked to do things solo, however I'm starting to think you just didn't trust them…" Naofumi deduced, and Ryou smile grew bigger, nodding.

"That's right, sure that the logical approach back then was to accept help, after all I knew nothing of this world, I was going completely blind, yet who was to tell me that the party members weren't planted spies that would report everything we did to the King? Well you probably would have been better off if you had allowed yourself to stay solo, but Aultcray, and Malty would have found another way to screw you over..." That was the truth of his situation, the Shield Hero had a very big target on his back, being suspicious might not have prevented everything from coming to pass, but it might have soften the blow that would surely come.

"That's the thing that has been tripping me off about you... The way your always talking and interacting with me, it's almost like you never believed the rumors…" The Shield Hero stated, also taking a seat on the ground.

"That's because I didn't, at least not entirely…" Ryou trailed off.

"Huh?" Naofumi blinked a couple of times at the admission, and the Bow Hero scratched his head, deciding to explain his reasoning even if it wasn't the complete truth.

"This is why I call you guys idiots… Look, we started all at level one, and among us you were the most harmless. Malty, even if we didn't knew it back then that she was the princess, presented herself as an adventurer, so no doubt she had experience. The level gap between both of you was probably so large at that point, she could have killed you just by sneezing hard enough, yet you mean to tell me that you supposedly did what you did, and she didn't put up a fight at all?" Ryou explained ending with a slightly incredulous tone before scoffing at the thought, "Sorry but I didn't bought it, even if she had been drunk as a skunk, personal stats were still in play, and she would have been easily able to overpower you with a simple push... So nothing would have happened back there that wasn't consensual…"

Malty being the princess, made it so she at least knew how to defend herself, the same as Melty. Even if she had been level eight or ten, that would still be ten times Naofumi's level, and without having any shield mastered, the Shield Hero was completely harmless at that point.

The Bow Hero heard a small "Mep!" that made him little amused. The sound came from his partner, obviously because of the slightly higher rated topic, however a moment later he turned to her with a suspicious gaze.

_Wait__… So the moment I mention a whore you immediately jump to the worse possible conclusion, yet when we talk about this stuff you turn into a pure-hearthed maiden?_ Ryou wondered before shaking his head. He would never understand Rishia's thought process.

Returning his gaze to the Shield Hero, he saw that Naofumi had a grimace on his face as he remembered the entire thing. However a few moments later his eyes narrowed.

"That might be true, but if you reached that conclusion, why didn't you even bother to show up back then?" Ryou observed the growing aggravation in his expression, and released a tired sigh.

"And do what Naofumi? Look, this might be shitty to hear, but I'm not your older brother, neither am I your father, and much less your babysitter. I hardly knew you back then, so I wasn't going to jump into the frying pan for a stranger, and even if I did, nothing would have come out off it... No actually on second thought something would have, I probably would have sunken along with you... I'm not that righteous though, and if you say that you would have done something were our places reversed, then I'll call it bullshit…" Ryou finished, with a far heavy tone, and once again the anger escaped the Shield Hero, finding he couldn't respond to that, not without being an hypocrite, it was also clear right there that Naofumi had mellow out a bit, no doubt the work of the demi-human girl he had with him.

"Besides that, there were other factors that let me reach that conclusion though...The second, was that I met Motoyasu, and Malty on that day… The one with the wolves, and I don't know a lot about rape, or almost rape victims, but I know at least there's some psychological trauma associated with it, yet Malty looked right as rain when I saw her, that was until the incident was mentioned at least, but once again that struck me as suspicious…" Back then he did wonder about it, Motoyasu at least should have been able to see it, but then again that guy only saw what he wanted to see, and no more than that.

"But the final nail in the coffin that put an end to any doubt, was actually because of this one…" Ryou finished pointing at Raphtalia.

"Huhh? Me?" She questioned pointing at herself, and Ryou nodded at her.

"Yes,Raphtalia, I might have an idea of what you went through based on the way your eyes had no light in them back there…" Ryou hated to poke the wound like Naofumi did, and felt especially bad when her tail stopped waving, and her eyes found the ground, nonetheless he continued, "...However imagine my surprise when I return two weeks later, and you weren't acting like a corpse anymore, but instead like a completely normal teenager would… That erased any doubts I had about the whole thing…"

It was a complete mixture of half-truths, and lies, Ryou didn't even knew he could lie that much, but for now it was needed. Naofumi would never look at him in the face, much less work besides him, if he knew the true origins of Ryou's knowledge. For the sake of their survival, and to defeat the waves, it was a necessary evil. Sure most of it came from his memory of the story, however most of these conclusions could easily be reached by anyone with half a brain...

_Shit now I__'m starting to think like that Psycho Maid… Maybe one day I'll be able to come clean with him, he deserves that much, however it won't be anywhere in the near future..._

Taking a look at Naofumi, who could only stand there mouth slightly opened Ryou decided to finish the whole thing on a more positive note. "Naofumi, you're a bastard that's my opinion, and it's never going to change, however I'm pretty sure the feeling is mutual, right? That brought a twitch to the Shield Hero's face, before it turned into his customary scowl.

"You got that right…" Ryou chuckle at that before rising off the ground.

"But even being has big of a douche as you are, there was no way the rumors could be true with the way Raphtalia grew up…"Ryou stopped, before his eyes locked on the ground for an instant, "...besides if you were anything like the rumors stated, then you wouldn't have saved my life back then either."

"I already told you, that's because the waves grow stronger if a Hero dies!" He exclaimed heatedly, refusing to meet his eyes, prompting another chuckle from Ryou.

"Trying to save face in front of Raphtalia now, are we?" The Shield Hero huffed to the side, ignoring the fact that everyone was showing their amusement.

"What I wanted to say is, I believe you." Ryou finished, stretching his hand towards the Shield Hero, who looked slightly stunned, before his eyes softened just a fraction, and he took the hand allowing himself to be pulled upwards.

"Whatever…" He murmured, but Ryou knew that at least his words had reached his fellow hero.

"There's one last thing I wanted to warn you about though…" The Bow Hero remembered, his tone slightly more serious, something that the other hero mimicked.

"What?"

"I don't know if you know this, but Melromarc's main religion is the Church of the Three Heroes... I don't think, I need to tell you which one is missing." Ryou watched as Naofumi's face darkened, and he snarled.

"There's even a religion against me?!" Ryou could understand his outrage, after all having the King, The princess, and god knew how many nobles against you, was already bad enough,

"Yeah, suffice to say, that according to their teachings, you might has well be the incarnation of the devil…" Naofumi started pacing around.

"Wonderful! Just wonderful! Next thing I know, I'm being burned in the main square!"

"Well I doubt they will go that far, at least for now. They just see you as an annoyance at best, however if you keep getting stronger, no doubt they will start seeing you as a threat, and that's where all bets will be off." That made the other hero turn around with another snarl, and the glare to match, but Ryou knew it wasn't directed to him, at least not completely.

"Then what should I do?! Should I just take a seat, and twinkle my thumbs?!" Ryou shook his head.

"Of course not! You should focus on getting as strong as you can, to survive the waves, I'm only telling you this to warn you, be careful. That goes triple for the Pope, the leader of their religion…" Naofumi faced returned to his normal scowl at the mention of the head of the religion.

"So their big boss also hates my guts? Well that's nothing new, apparently is a trend in this country right?!" That statement was almost funny, if the situation wasn't so serious.

"Hates you? No… That man absolutely despises you, and he's dangerous, much more than Aultcray or Malty. He is a fanatic, and he isn't above using every means available to get what he wants… That includes erasing everything in his path, even the four Legendary Heroes..." Ryou explained much to the disbelief of the Shield Hero.

"But if the waves get harder with each hero killed, it's just completely insane to even consider such a thing!" Turning to look at the speaker Ryou smiled grimly at the demi-human.

"That's the problem with fanatics, they don't listen to reason or even common sense Raphtalia. To them, their actions are always in the right, no matter what…" That wasn't just common to the Church of the Three Heroes, but everything else.

_People will find any reason to justify their actions, no matter how heinous, and find any excuse to escape taking responsibility for them__…_

"How do you know about all of this Ryou?" Naofumi questioned confused to where the Bow Hero had gained that kind of information.

Ryou crossed his arms over his chest, "I have a few contacts here, and there that told me that much, besides that, I met him before the celebration… I got that vibe from him, especially since I stepped on his toes, and that might have pissed him off a little… He was very subtle, but I got the message, and the threat that came with it..." He ended with a shrug, it hadn't been on purpose, but he doubt the Pope would even care.

"I don't even want to know how you manage that one, especially in just a month. What I know is I'm going to stay clear of Castle Town for a while…" Ryou nodded at that, it would be the best, for both of them.

"On a different note, I also want to apologize to you, and Raphtalia…" Ryou began, making the Demi-human look at him in confusion, and Naofumi in slight suspicion.

"For what?" The Bow Hero lowered his eyes. Even if it had been for the best. He had rationalized it, and beaten himself over it, time and time again, however this too was something he needed to get off his chest.

"During and after the duel, I should have done more, instead I stood in the sidelines like a coward, especially since I owe you both my life." Ryou admitted.

"That's not true!" Raphtalia shouted startling Ryou. She shook her head, making her way to stand right in front of him.

"Ryou-sama you've always been there for us, even when the entire country hates Naofumi-sama…That takes courage, and kindness, and no one can't fault you for not doing more, what you have done for us until now is far more than enough!" She stated, eyes almost shining.

"But…" However the demi-human girl interrupted him.

"I asked Motoyasu-sama, if he was able to extend a hand to a slave on his deathbed, I doubted that he would have done so, I still do… But you did it Ryou-sama…" She stated, and Ryou was at a complete lost to what she was saying.

"Don't you remember? The first time we met at Erhard-sama's store, back there you extended your hand to me, did you not? You were also kind to me, time and time again…" Ryou eyes widen at the memory.

"That day with the wolves too… You could have left us to our fate, yet the first thing you did was pick me up, and get me to safety, you even warned Naofumi-sama…" She placed her hand over her chest, and closed her eyes, a smile forming on her face.

I_t was my fault they were there in the first place__…_ Ryou thought, however his contemplation were broken by the demi-human who continued.

"...and during the wave... You could have followed the other heroes, yet you choose to help us. I doubt me and Naofumi-sama could have dealt with the Chimera if you, and Rishia-chan weren't there…" She continued slowly, shaking her head, before opening her eyes, her smile growing a little.

"Not only that, you helped Naofumi-sama with his abilities, and I can see that you care, about both of us… You even stopped the princess from interfering with Naofumi-sama's match…" Ryou swallowed in dry. She had seen that particular thing, and he took a look at Naofumi. The Shield Hero was glancing to the side, yet he didn't seemed surprised at that piece of information.

"I heard what you said to Motoyasu-sama, how you got angry on our behalf... You even went as far as sharing the reward with us…" Hearing such heartfelt words touched something inside of him, and Ryou felt his eyes warm a little.

"So thank you Ryou-sama, no... Yumi no Yuusha-sama, for everything you have done until now!" Raphtalia finished bowing at the waist.

Ryou lowered his head, to hide the fact that he was tearing up. However he did caught the proud, and happy smile Rishia had on her face. and for the first time since setting foot on this world, he didn't felt disgust at being addressed by his title.

"Even if he's still a bastard… But don't worry, I fully intent to pay every piece of copper I owe you." A voice interjected off offhandedly.

"Naofumi-sama!" The demi-human turned to her master scandalized.

"Fuee… A-Are you alright Ryou-sama?" Rishia asked peering at him, and Ryou nodded. He definitely felt lighter.

Rubbing his eyes for a last time Ryou couldn't help the chuckle that escaped him ," Hahahaha... Way to ruin the mood there, Naofumi."

"On that note, Naofumi-sama you should also apologize to Ryou-sama!" Naofumi's jaw dropped hearing that.

"What? Why? I haven't done anything wrong!" He defended himself, yet Raphtalia was on a roll.

"Yes you did!" The demi-human turned towards Ryou again, "Ryou-sama, please listen to this! The first thing Naofumi-sama did with the money you gave us, was waste it!" Ryou felt both amused, and relieved. He had an idea on what Naofumi had 'wasted' the money, and he didn't mind it in the slightest.

"Oh shut up! It wasn't a waste, it was investment! Even Ryou thinks so, look he also as an egg on him!" Naofumi stopped taking another look, his eyes narrowing slightly, "That's an egg isn't it?"

Ryou took a look at the egg in Rishia's arms before shrugging, "I think it is…"

"I figured since its inside the same glass container, as the ones I have." Naofumi concluded.

_Wait plural? As in more then one..?_ Ryou wondered before he took a glance to the side, and indeed instead of one, there were two eggs side by side next to a fallen tree trunk bathing in the sunlight.

"You bought two?" Ryou questioned slightly surprised at the change.

"Well yeah, it was a monster lottery, two means twice the chances of getting something good, right?" Naofumi offered.

_Well as long as Filo is in there I don't particularly care, although, I wonder how Naofumi will deal with it, if there are two Filos instead of just one__…_ Ryou wondered shaking his head. One Filorial Queen had almost drove Naofumi up the wall, if there were two the Shield Hero might have a mental breakdown in the future.

"Fuee… Ryou-sama is making a weird face again…" Rishia exclaimed, a small hint of exasperation in her voice.

_Well whatever... This isn't exactly what I hoped, but maybe that's actually a good thing__…_

"By the way, I heard something weird about you back in Castle Town." Naofumi stated, eyeing the Bow Hero as if looking for something.

"Something weird?" For some reason Ryou felt a small amount of eeriness at those words.

"Yeah… Something about you going into the woods at night to meet with some prostitute?" Naofumi questioned confused.

The Bow Hero brought his palms up in a effort to hide his face, and then he finally lost it…

Some guards that were guarding the wall of Castle Town, would later swear during a round of beer at the local tavern that night, that they heard something resembling a scream from the distance, but when they went to investigate they found nothing.

* * *

After that the two parties shared lunch together, trading some stories. There was also some banter, but that was mostly between Naofumi, and Ryou, but overall, the mood between everyone was one of peace, and comradeship.

Finally after everything was done, it was time to part ways…

"Make sure you stay clear of Castle Town for a while, I'll do the same, the less ammunition you give them to screw you over, the better…" Ryou cautioned. The Shield Hero nodded seriously, intent on doing just that, before turning around.

"Naofumi..." The Shield Hero, turned back, and his eyes widen at the outstretched hand in front of him.

"See you in three months… Don't die out there…" Ryou finished with a grin, The Shield Hero lowered his head slightly, before raising it, with a similar grin on his face, and took the hand into his.

"I'm more worried about you, don't get eaten by a wolf out there..." Naofumi shot back.

Rishia, and Raphtalia just smiled softly at the display of friendship, even if the two heroes would never admit such a thing.

Finally Ryou let go of Naofumi's hand, and raised it towards the sky, "Teleport: Northern Village."

A pillar of blue light, came down from the skies obscuring both him and Rishia, after a moment the pillars vanished along with the Bow Hero, and his partner.

"Raphtalia…" Naofumi uttered tone completely blank.

"Yes Naofumi-sama?" The girl tilted her head to the side.

"Ryou and Rishia, they just teleported, right?" Naofumi questioned, his tone devoid of any emotion.

"I think so, it was in the name of the skill afterall…" She responded after a beet. However the Shield Hero just clenched his teeth, his voice turning slightly angry.

"That bastard knows how to teleport, and he didn't told me about it! I bet he did that on purpose!" He raged, and Raphtalia just let out a giggle.

"Well, I guess you have something to talk about next time we meet, since you're officially friends now…" That made the Shield Hero turn to her in a flash, his face locked in the mightiest of scowls.

"The hell we are!" He roared at her, however the demi-human shook her head, laughing behind her hand.

_I still don__'t know if this is a men's thing or just a hero's thing… Honestly these two..._

* * *

**Side Note -** As promised, next is a list of bows that Ryou as unlocked up until this point, along with some descriptions of their abilities since a lot of you requested it, if anyone as any doubts about some of them, feel free to PM me.

**[Legendary Small Bow - Equipment Bonus - +3 Attack] **

_-The base form of the legendary bow._

**[Orange Bow - Equipment Bonus - +2 Agility - Requirements - 3 Orange Remains] **

_-As lower stats then the base form._

**[Yellow Bow - Equipment Bonus - +2 Agility - Requirements - 3 Orange Remains] **

**[Red Bow - Equipment Bonus - +3 Agility - Requirements - 3 Orange Remains]**

_-Red Balloons are slightly rarer then the other variations, therefore the bonus is also a bit higher._

**[Balloon Bow - Equipment Bonus - +2 Attack, +3 Agility, Monster Encyclopedia - Requirements - 10 Remains of each Balloon Variation, Level 20] **

_-Monster Encyclopedia let__'s the user track monsters drops, and location as well as some general information on the monster itself (Doesn't show the monsters stats)_

**[Usapil Leather Bow - Equipment Bonus - +3 Agility - Requirements - 3 Usapil Leather]**

**[Usapil Meat Bow - Equipment Bonus - +1 Dismantling Technique - Requirements - 3 Usapil Meat] **

_-Dismantling Technique, gives the user instinctive knowledge on how to dismantle monsters, higher level lets user dismantle bigger monsters._

**[Usapil Bone Bow - Equipment Bonus - Agility Bonus(Small) - Requirements - 5 Usapil Bones]**

_Small Boost to Agility._

**[Woodcutting Bow - Equipment Bonus - +1 Woodcutting Technique, Serrated Shot - Requirements - Woodcutting Axe]**

_Serrated Shot, lets the user cut down tree__'s easily, doesn't do additional damage._

**[Drilling Bow - Equipment Bonus - +1 Mining Technique, Drilling Shot - Requirements - Pickaxe]**

_Drilling Shot, lets the user mine rocks, and Minerals, doesn__'t do additional damage._

**[Digging Bow - Equipment Bonus - +1 Digging Technique, Tunneling Shot - Requirements - Shovel]**

_Tunneling Shot, lets the user dig small holes, doesn__'t do additional damage._

**[Leaf Bow - Equipment Bonus - +1 Gathering Technique - Requirements - 5 Random Leaves]**

_Gathering Technique lets the user have an easier time identifying usable items._

**[Fishing Bow - Equipment Bonus - +1 Fishing Technique, Serrated Shot - Requirements - 1 River Fish]**

_Fishing Technique, better chance to attract fish._

**[Rock Bow - Equipment Bonus - +4 Defense - Special Effect - Agility Penalty(Medium) - Requirements - 5 Rocks]**

_Big boost to defense, in exchange for a very big reduction in agility._

**[Green Mush Bow - Equipment Bonus - +1 Blending Technique - Requirements - 3 Green Mush Remains]**

_Gives the user a better understanding on how to mix items manually._

**[Blue Mush Bow - Equipment Bonus - Apprentice Blending Recipes - Requirements - 3 Blue Mush Remains]**

_Gives the user knowledge of low level recipes._

**[White Mush Bow - Equipment Bonus - +1 Plant Identification Technique - Requirements - 3 White Mush Remains]**

_Lets the user scan plants to identify some of their properties._

**[Mush Bow - Equipment Bonus - +1 Blending Technique, +1 Plant Identification Technique, Intermediate Blending Recipes, Plant Encyclopedia - Requirements - 10 Mush Remains from every variation, Level 25]**

_Plant Encyclopedia, lets the user know what some plants properties are, and where to find them._

**[Wolf Meat Bow - Equipment Bonus - +1 Dismantling Technique - Requirements - 3 Wolf Meat]**

**[Great Wolf Meat Bow - Equipment Bonus - +2 Dismantling Technique - Requirements - 3 Great Wolf Meat]**

**[Dire Furry Bow - Equipment Bonus - +6 Agility - Requirements - Dire Wolf Pelt]**

**[Great Furry Bow - Equipment Bonus - +10 Agility - Special Effect- Fire Resistance Bonus(Small) - Requirements - Great Dire Wolf Pelt]**

_A small percentage based reduction to fire attacks._

**[Wolf Fanged Bow Equipment Bonus - +6 Attack, Attack Speed Bonus(Small) - Requirements - 3 Dire Wolf Teeth]**

_A small Increase on Attack Speed._

**[Great Fanged Bow - Equipment Bonus - +12 Attack, Rapid Shot - Special Effect - Attack Speed Bonus(Small) - Requirements - 3 Great Wolf Teeth]**

_Rapid Shot - A Skill that repeats the last arrow shot, another additional two times(Can be used in conjunction with other skills, like the fire shot to fire three flaming arrows in quick succession, of with the ramming shot to create three shock waves, however there is a very big SP consumption when done so)_

**[Spiked Bow - Equipment Bonus - +4 Defense - Special Effect - Spike Counter - Requirements - 3 Porcupines Spikes]**

_Damages monsters that hit the bow._

**[Poison Frog Bow - Equipment Bonus - +4 Agility, Poison Shot, Poison Resistance Bonus(Small) - Requirements - 3 Poison Frog Skin]**

_Small Resistance against poisons, Poison Shot- Fires an Arrow that will inflict a small damage over time effect._

**[Northern Spider Bow - Equipment Bonus - +3 Agility, Gripping Skill - Requirements - 4 Northern Spider Legs]**

_Allows the user to grip surfaces with his extremities, however the skill must be repeated every time the user comes in contact with a surface.(Henceforth why Ryou had a nice encounter with the ground when he tried to copy Naruto at climbing a tree vertically, because every-time his foot met the tree he had to cast the skill or it wouldn__'t stick.)_

**[Chain Bow - Equipment Bonus - +2 Agility, 1 Defense, Chain Arrow - Requirements - 3 Metal Chains]**

_Chain Arrow - Fires an Arrow with a Chain attached to it, the chain disperses after a few seconds of not being connected to the user, or if the user wishes to disperse it._

**[Inter-Dimensional Bee Bow - Equipment Bonus - +6 Agility, Projectile Speed Bonus(Small) - Requirements - 3 Inter-Dimensional Bee Stingers]**

_A small Increase to the speed the arrows travel._

**[Inter-Dimensional Zombie Bow - Equipment Bonus - +3 Attack, Decay Resistance Bonus(Small) - Requirements - 3 Inter-Dimensional Zombie Meat]**

_Lets perishables in the user__'s possession last longer_

**[Inter-Dimensional Bee Bow - Equipment Bonus - +5 Attack, Decay Resistance Bonus(Medium) - Requirements - 3 Inter-Dimensional Giant Zombie Meat]**

**[Chimeric Meat Bow - Equipment Bonus - +1 Cooking Ability - Requirements - 3 Chimera Meat]**

_Lets the user have an easier time preparing food, also makes food prepared taste better._

**[Chimeric Bone Bow - Equipment Bonus - + 5 Agility, Darkness Resistance Bonus (Small) - Requirements - 3 Chimera Bones]**

_Small percentage based reduction to Dark attacks._

**[Chimeric Leather Bow - Equipment Bonus - +5 Agility, +5 Defense - Requirements - 1 Chimera Leather]**

**[Chimeric Dragon Bow - Equipment Bonus - +10 Attack, Fire Resistance Bonus(Small), Fire Shot- Special Effect - Fire Damage Bonus(Small - Requirements - 1 Chimera Dragon Head]**

_Fire Shot - Creates an arrow made completely of flames, detonates in a small dome of fire after a while. The Bow also naturally increases fire based attacks._

**[Chimeric Goat Bow - Equipment Bonus - +5 Attack, +5 Defense, Knock-Back Resistance Bonus(Small), Ramming Shot- Special Effect-Knock-Back Effect Bonus(Small) - Requirements - 1 Chimera Goat Head]**

_Ramming Shot - Creates a pure white ethereal arrow that explodes on contact releasing a shock-wave, while the shock-wave deals no damage its power is affected by the Attack Attribute.(Henceforth why Ryou sent the poor Usapils flying into oblivion Team Rocket Style.). The bow also naturally increases knock-back effects._

**[Ballista - Rarity - C - Status - Sealed - Mastery - 0/100 - Equipment Bonus - +5 Attack - Special Effect - A****ttack Bonus (Medium), Penetration Bonus (Small), Movement Speed Penalty (Great), Attack Speed Penalty (Medium)**

_The last weapon on the list is a Siege Weapon that Ryou gained access to by using the copy system, this one already shows all the Information pertaining the Strengthening Methods, though this also obviously applies to all previous bows. The Ballista besides the bonuses also as a great Attack power, this of course comes at the expense of greatly reduced mobility, and a decrease on attack speed._

* * *

These are all the Bows, Ryou as unlocked up until this point in time, any upgrade that I find meaningful will obvious be shown during the course of the story as it as been done previously, although I will probably start adding every bow Ryou unlocks, at the end of each chapter like I did with this list.

* * *

**Now without further ado, here are a few snippets from the next Arc just to get the Imagination flowing.**

* * *

"Fuee… S-Since I j-joined you, I-I always been w-wondering what I c-can become… Whats m-my role on the party… Y-You keep saying t-that we are p-partners...But what e-exactly does that w-word means to y-you...?"

* * *

"If home is a place where memories are, or where people are thinking about you then… My home is probably forever out of my reach..."

"That's why I told you to try and make a new home here… It doesn't have to be now, or even the next month… However as your create new memories, you will find that you might just make a home for yourself even if you don't realize it…"

* * *

_This is Filo all over again isn__'t it? I already saw this crap happen once…_

"Ryou-sama no matter how you look at this its not normal!"

"Fuee… The village is better now, but it wont have cattle anymore if this keeps up..."

* * *

"Goddammit Rishia! You said this was a Mithril Mine, but between this eldritch abomination, and the pig thing, I'm starting to think this cave is actually Cthulhu's Nursery!"

"Fuuee! I'm sorry! It was s-suppose to be!"

* * *

_Wait a minute, Bio-engineered? As in someone made this thing? Who the hell is the crazy bastard that would make a monster that can shot death beams from its mouth?! And how the hell did it end up here? Did that bastard flush it down the toiled when it was small or something?_

_...Somewhere in Faubley a blond woman sneezed rather violently__…_

* * *

"So, what is a slave trader doing all the way out here, in the middle of nowhere?"

"Monster trader! I'm only an honest monster trader, who only sells monsters, yes?"

"Sure you are…"

"I heard you have acquired quite a unique specimen, yes?"

"How the hell do you even know about it?"

"New travel fast, especially concerning the heroes, and I always need to be on top of them if I am to acquire, let's say the best possible merchandise."

* * *

"Shit that's one of the Legendary Heroes, the Yumi-no Yuusha!"

"Hero?! With that ominous feeling, and blood lust around him, there's no way that's a Hero! That's a demon straight from hell!"

* * *

"I actually like Naofumi-sama even i-if he's a l-little scary, but he w-would never say I-I'm a wonderful person…"

"Pfff Hahahaha! Yeah Probably not… He would most like just say you're not that bad or something, but I know, deep down under all those layers of nasty, he would acknowledge it!"

* * *

"Read the sign!"

_How is it__… That even a country of distance away, those bastards still find a way to screw with me!_

* * *

"I-I have been watching you practice, and tried to do the same… I-Its surprisingly easy…"

_Easy she says__… Do you have any idea how much face planting I did to be able to do this much!_

"Fueee… What's wrong?"

"Don't talk with me for a minute Rishia, I'm currently having a crisis involving my worth as a hero…"

* * *

"Fueee! Please stop that or I'll fall!"

"If you fall, I'm gonna laugh at you…"

"You, and me both…."

"Fueee! You're both mean!"

* * *

_Skeleton Warrior, Skeleton Mage, Skeleton Dog, Skeleton Chimera, Skeleton Cerberus__… Skeletons, skeletons and more freaking skeletons! Why is everything just a big pile of bones here!_

* * *

"What happen to her? One moment everything was normal, the other she's releasing enough magical power to flatten a village! We were lucky this place is so sturdy…"

* * *

"Ryou, I think you should give up... I don't want to sound like I'm bad mouthing you but your really bad at magic, and I mean really, really bad. Things that come instinctively to a lot of us, took you weeks to learn…"

"It's not my fault you know! I'm ninety percent sure my old world didn't have magic, so I have to work twice as hard to grasp things that just come naturally to you…"

"More like ten times…"

"Fuee… Ryou isn't that bad… Probably…"

_That __'probably' at the end just straight up killed me Rishia…_

* * *

"Fuee... Ryou… Can I… Can I come with you?"

"Yeah sure, there's something that I want to talk to you about anyway…"

"Tsk, no fair I want to go too!"

"Sorry, not today, what I want to talk with Rishia is personal…"

"Ohhhh, I see how it is…"

"No you don't, whatever your thinking is wrong."

* * *

"Alright people! Me and Rishia are going to the Dragon Hourglass to get her class up, so you don't leave this room unless you absolutely have too. This place is filled with low-lives and I don't trust them not to try anything weird."

"I don't know what your saying, the biggest low life is about to hit the streets after all!"

"Brat, when I come back, you and me are going to have some words about that shitty attitude of yours…"

"I like this kid…"

"Of course you do, you little weasel!"

"Ryou, jokes aside now… After having heard everyone's story, I can't help but to ask… You're really weak against people in a bad spot, aren't you?"

"…Not… Another… Word…"

_This is bordering on harassment isn__'t it..? This is definitely karma for making fun of Naofumi…_

* * *

"…we plead that you fight in the coming wave!"

"Errrr... I was already going to do that…"

"Haaa there seems to be a misunderstanding, I don't mean the one in Melromarc, I meant the one that is going to hit our country in three days!"

"…Run that one by me again?"

* * *

"_I just got an update, something very strong as just entered the battlefield…"_

"_Something very strong? How much stronger are we talking about here?"_

"_Much, much stronger than that thingy…" _

_What could possibly be stronger then a wave bo__… Ohh no…No, no, no… Our luck cannot possibly be that shitty!_

* * *

That's it guys, obviously I changed the dialog, and took out the names to avoid heavy spoilers, so see you guys December the 13th, with a brand new arc.

* * *

_Next Chapter: Braving Into a New World: Meaning of Home_


	22. Meaning of Home

**A/N -** Well guys I'm back, and its Christmas season! Finally got a laptop which makes things a lot easier too.

This chapter is the beginning of the new arc, that will encompass the period until the third wave in Melromarc, with that said it will also be bigger than the previous two, since there will be a lot to cover, and uncover, along with the start of the true derailing from canon.

Also If anyone is interested, I'm currently looking for a Beta-reader, mostly to help a little on the grammar, and such, do take into consideration that I update every week, or every two weeks, so there's that, if anyone is interested just feel free to PM me.

With all that said here we go. Where Ryou starts multitasking, and powering up, Rishia questions her place in his party, and the Bow Hero completely nails it, or not... And where Ryou finally acknowledges something that as been eating since setting foot on Melromarc.

* * *

**Chapter 22. Braving Into a New World: Meaning of Home**

Teleporting was an interesting if weird experience, after the blue pillar of light came down on him, there was a small moment where everything almost seemed to stop, then Ryou felt a pull on his stomach, and the blue light vanished back into the skies, leaving them in front of the familiar gates of Northern Village. The gates seemed the same, with the addition of two guards on each side, that were looking at them with some degree of curiosity.

Straightening himself, Ryou took in a deep breath. The slightly colder air filled his lungs, along with the fragrance of the pine trees, that while not all that different from the forests around Castle Town, always brought a feeling of nostalgia to the small hero. Last time he had set foot on Northern Village, everything had been erratic, but it still reminded him deeply of his maternal grandmother's village, and that also added to the feeling.

Turning to the side to confirm he hadn't misplaced his partner across time, and space, he saw Rishia crouched on the ground, her hair hiding her face from view. The incubator clutched against her, and Ryou almost feared it would break from the strain his partner seemed to be applying on it.

"You alright there Rishia?" He questioned worriedly, making his way towards the girl, before crouching near her. The girl in question turned to look at him, her face having a little less color than usual. Shaking her head slightly, her eyes widen a little, and one of her hands rose to her mouth, as she gave a dry heave.

"Fuee… I-I think I'm going to be sick…" Her voice came out muffled and strained.

Ryou could only sympathize with her while he reached with his arms, and took the egg back. The last thing he wanted to see was their newest party member getting covered in Rishia's lunch before it was even born. There was no need to traumatize the poor thing so early even if he acknowledged that it would have made a funny story to retell down the line.

"Sorry, but there was no other way unless you wanted to walk…" He admitted, changing to support the egg on one arm, as the other went to her back rubbing it slightly. Unfortunately, she would have to get used to it, because Ryou had no intention of not using such a convenient ability.

"I-It felt like someone grabbed my stomach, and shook it really hard…" She commented, giving another small heave before rising wobbly to her feet.

"Yeah, I felt the same, but it didn't make me sick…" Ryou commented lightly. Rishia seemingly pondered on the subject for a few seconds before adding her two cents.

"It's probably something to do with Ryou-sama being a Hero…" Ryou hummed, considering her words. Naofumi had also been fine riding a carriage with Filo pulling it, while Raphtalia had a bit of trouble. The Shield Hero, however, could also hold his alcohol like a champion, and while Ryou could take a couple of drinks, he had one devastating weakness… Wine… The Bow Hero could down almost any drink no problem, but two glasses of wine would make it very hard for him to synchronize his steps. That, along with the fact that getting drunk on hostile territory was a very bad idea, had been the reason he had stayed away from the beverage in this world.

Taking another look at his partner his lips twitched a little.

"Maybe that's the case, or maybe..." He drawled purposely,"…you just have a sensitive stomach…" He said in a light joking tone. Having spent some time with the girl, he knew how to push her buttons, and it was with some satisfaction that he watched, the normal shy, or apprehensive girl depending on the mood, turn slightly aggravated.

"Fuee, I do not!" She exclaimed, slightly angry at the accusation. Ryou smile grew an inch, taking in her angry stare.

_That glare of yours needs a lot of work…_ Ryou observed. Her look could hardly be described as a glare, however, he also doubted that Rishia would ever be able to pull intimidating in her life, it just wasn't in her blood. The best-case scenario would be the girl intimidating people with her skills, without even meaning too.

Messing with Rishia was becoming his favorite hobby, especially since she just made it so easy.

_Keep going like this, and one of these days I'll wake up with a knife between my ribs or smothered by a pillow… It's always the shy ones… Such a sad ending for a Legendary Hero, and somehow I'll still be able to say that it was worth it…_ Shaking the slightly idiotic thoughts that never failed to come to his mind, Ryou motioned towards the gates with his head.

"Whatever you say Rishia. Come on let's go meet your father…" Ryou said, before turning to move towards the gates. The green-haired girl only released an inaudible huff, before falling in step slightly behind the hero.

* * *

"My beautiful daughter you have returned, and so soon too!" The loud voice brought Ryou to a very sudden stop, and he almost turned back to the gates to verify if they were indeed in Northern Village. Halfway through the Ivyred's courtyard, the door of their home had almost been wrenched from its hinges by Lord Almond. Now the Bow Hero could only stand in shock, observing the one-eighty, the man's personality and demeanor had done since last time.

"Fueee! Yes, father! I have so much to tell!" Rishia exclaimed before she was promptly engulfed in a giant hug. Ryou continued to watch, comparing the composed Lord he had met, to this new far more lively version, and he couldn't help but wonder…

_Is this anime..? _

After letting her go, but still maintaining her within arms reach, with his hands on her shoulders, Almond proceeded to inspect every inch of his daughter from various angles, probably trying to verify if anything was out of place before his eyes widened when he realized Ryou's presence. In record time, the man straightened himself, one hand going behind his back, the other going to his mouth, before releasing two light coughs, and turning to address him.

"Ryou-sama its an honor to see you again, and in good health too…" The man stated going back to the personality that Ryou had associated the noble with, in his mind, much to the Bow Hero's silent amusement.

_Trying to save face, are we? A little too late for that isn__'t it Lord Almond..?_

Moving towards the noble Ryou offered his hand in greeting, "Yeah for the most part. It's also good to see you, Lord Almond, you almost seem younger now."

The man took his hand, before coughing again in the other, and looking just a small bit embarrassed, "Well yes… Now that my village is finally stable, even with having much more work, it feels like a huge burden has been taken from my shoulders."

Ryou believed that one hundred percent, especially since the specter of Gentlewood no longer hovered over it. It was clear just by having walked through the village that the inhabitants had a bit more life in them, there were also a few merchants that had set their stalls along the dirt road, something that had also been absent in the past.

The man once again turned to Rishia, and his posture went back to exuberant, along with his voice. "My darling daughter! Even here, I received word of how magnificently you fought, and helped subdue the wave! Come you must tell me everything!" The man shouted, and color rushed to Rishia's face at the praise, and even when she tried to deny it, it fell mostly on deaf hears, as she was ushered inside.

Finally Almond turned to Ryou who was watching the entire thing silently, "Ahh you come to Ryou-sama, I also want to hear tales of your bravery…"

At the request Ryou made his way to follow them, shaking his head slightly at the entire interaction. The Ivyred's were a sight to behold.

_From the might Yumi-no Yuusha-sama to an afterthought__… Well, I can't blame him, she is his 'darling daughter' after all…_ Ryou chortled at that one, vowing to use it when the opportunity presented itself.

* * *

"So Aultcray is still holding too his hatred with such conviction after all this time…" Almond murmured sadly.

Now an hour later, Rishia had recounted everything that had happened in these two weeks, with Ryou only interjecting when needed, being far too comfortable just listening from his place on the couch. From her meeting Naofumi, and Raphtalia, to the wave, and even the celebration, and the ensuing duel, Rishia had hardly left anything out.

"That's something that has been bothering me since I first set foot on this world… What exactly is Aultcray's beef with Naofumi, or rather the Shield Hero?" Ryou finally interjected. He had ignored it in the beginning because it had nothing to do with him, but now it was truly weighing on his mind.

Almond released a sigh, after taking a sip of his tea, "It's not Naofumi-sama or being the Tate no Yuusha-sama that's the problem, it's what it represents…"

Ryou nodded at the comment, he knew there was a correlation between the Demi-humans worshiping the Shield Hero, and Aultcray's hatred, but he was missing a piece of the puzzle.

"I know that much, it's because Demi-humans worship the Shield Hero, and so he became the focus of Aultcray's hatred, but that's common around Melromarc… The King, however, takes it several levels above that…" Ryou added. Hating Naofumi was in the Shield Hero's own words a trend, but Aultcray took it to the next level, and it seemed completely out of proportions even by national standards.

"The reason behind it was most likely the war with Siltvelt, and maybe what came before that…" Ryou's eyes widen at the new information. The Bow Hero knew there was tension between the two countries, especially with Siltvelt being a country of Demi-humans, but he never considered there had been an outright war.

"Melromarc went to war with Siltvelt?" Ryou asked, leaning forward.

Almond smiled, but it looked sarcastic, before expanding, "Went? Ryou-sama you speak as if the war is over… On the surface that might be the case, but in reality, we are only living in a period of ceasefire…"

That made a lot of sense and explained a few things. Initially, it had only been explained that the summoning of the Heroes had angered the other nations, and so the Queen had moved to quell those fires. Now living in this reality, Ryou had a feeling the situation was a little more serious than that, and that a war could break out if things went south, but he had no idea it was this serious.

"Is the King trying to officially restart the war?" The Bow Hero questioned after a moment. The ceasefire in any shape or form was surely the work of the Queen, and Aultcray had probably opposed that decision, but couldn't do much against the true ruler, so maybe now with the Queen away, and The Four Legendary Heroes on his home turf he was in a very good position to restart the flames of war.

"I honestly don't know, what I do know is that if it was up to him, the war wouldn't have ended until every single Demi-human had been exterminated from the face of the world…" Almond stated, shaking his head.

That confirmed another theory of the Bow Hero, and that was, that the King's hatred had to be personal, there was no way that wasn't the case. However, before he could question it any further Rishia beat him to it.

"Fuee… T -That's horrible, why do s-such a t-thing..?" The green-haired girl asked, her expression morphing into one of slight horror. Ryou could understand her shock, Rishia spent most of her time in Faubley studying were there was no discrimination, and she was close to Raphtalia, so such notion was completely atrocious in her head.

Almond leaned back, his fingers rubbing the sides of his head, before exhaling, " My daughter while our King's actions may be out of proportions, do take into consideration that Siltvelt and the Demi-humans who ruled it at the time were far from being in the right when they started the war… That being said I can only start to guess with the information I have, take into consideration this is mostly rumors from the court… Aultcray is not originally from Melromarc, he came here to fight against the Demi-humans since we were already at war back then… Apparently, his whole family was murdered by them…"

_That would surely do it.._. Ryou thought finally having the answer to that particular mystery. He felt he could connect with the King on some level even if their situation was different, what he could not connect with, was what the King was currently doing.

_You can't reason with hatred I know that much, but to condemn an entire race over it…_ Ryou shook his head. That was taking it to far, especially since Aultcray's actions, might not condemn just Demi-humans, but the entire world, his own family included to oblivion.

"Fuee…T-That's terrible, but most Demi-humans aren't at fault! Some of them weren't even born back then…" Rishia exclaimed. Ryou knew exactly who was on her mind at the moment but he only shook his head. The green-haired girl was too innocent.

"That doesn't matter to him Rishia… If the King is truly blinded by hatred, he won't see anything until its far too late... It's just like I told you, people will only see what they want to see, and Aultcray can probably only see evil when he looks at Demi-humans, and the personification of that evil in his eyes is without a doubt Naofumi..." Ryou finished, leaning back into the coach. Demi-humans were everywhere, even in his own country, but the object of their faith was only one, and that made Naofumi, Aultcray's nemesis, and a far easier target.

_I wonder if it ever crossed his mind, that if he had played his cards right with Naofumi, he could have had the Shield Hero on his side, and with a few well-placed words, he could have turned the Hero the Demi-humans adore into their worst enemy, especially with how Naive Naofumi was back then…_ Ryou considered. Thankfully the King never thought about such a thing, because a world where to Naofumi, Raphtalia was an enemy and evil was one he couldn't even begin to picture.

"The man that I used to know was one full of hatred but he wouldn't go about it in such a roundabout way. The Hero of the Cane... Now that was a truly fearsome man…" Almond commented, with a tone that surprised Ryou since he could detect respect in those words, however it was the content that made his eyebrows rise.

"Hero? Aultcray's a hero?" He questioned in slight disbelief. That couldn't be true, after all, according to what he remembered The King had almost pissed himself when Naofumi threatened him.

Almond looked amused at the look of disbelief on the Bow Hero's face, "Yes... Aultcray Melromarc XIII, Sage King of Melromarc, and Vassal Hero of the Cane! That was what he used to be known as…" Ryou just leaned back again, letting that particular piece of information sink.

_Vassal Hero… That's what Glass introduced herself has…_ That only made the situation even stranger. If Aultcray only possessed half of the strength, Glass could throw around, why be intimidated by Naofumi in the first place? Not only that but just like Almond had said previously, why go about it in such a roundabout way?

However, there was another thing that crossed the Bow Hero's mind.

"Just what are these Vassal Heroes, and how do they differ from us?" Ryou asked. That particular piece of information had never been explained, or maybe it had, but he couldn't recall.

"Fuee… The Vassal Heroes are the heroes closest to us… Or at least that's what it feels like since instead of being summoned with consent, they are chosen among the people to wield a vassal weapon…" His partner explained. Ryou had to wonder if it was the same for Glass, coming to the conclusion that was most likely the case, The woman had always given an honorable and extremely loyal feeling.

Nevertheless, there was something in Rishia's explanation that he couldn't let go.

"What do you mean with consent? I never sign up for this you know!" Ryou retorted, throwing a side glance to his partner, who shrunk a little.

"B-But R-Ryou-sama you did. You said so yourself, that y-you wished for a second c-chance. I think that this counts…"

The look in Ryou's eyes might have turned slightly colder, before crossing his arms with a small frown.

_Damn you, and your surprisingly logical arguments!_ The Bow Hero fumed silently, his mood getting even worse when Almond's chuckles echoed in the room.

* * *

The rest of the afternoon passed with small talk between the three, although eventually, Almond had to return to his duties. Rishia had then taken upon herself to dive into the attic in search of her college books, and personal notes. Faubley had a surprisingly competent educational system, and curriculum. Unfortunately, that did little for Ryou who couldn't understand squat of what was in her notes although he had to admit that Rishia had amazing, and precise calligraphy.

_I don't understand the language, but even I can tell that her calligraphy is amazing, though how it remains a mystery with how clumsy she is sometimes…_

A different approach was then taken, and between the two of them, they began associating Melromarc's Language with both Japanese, and English… The result was the realization that Melomarc's written language had some small similarities with the western alphabet, something that made learning a new language slightly easier for Ryou, what shocked the Bow Hero however was how effortlessly Rishia picked the concepts, and rules behind the languages of his old world.

_If she had been born in my world with the right chances, and her intelligence she would have had an amazing future in front of her… That is if she survived high school…_ Ryou finished with a silent chuckle. People like Rishia either had the luck to find a group of friends that would stick by them from the get-go, or would have a very hard time in school.

_...and if she attended the same high school as I did, Ohh boy would she have been swallowed whole… All things considered, that did happen in a way when her counterpart was in Itsuki's party…_ Ryou stopped his train of thought there. Since Rishia had joined his party, his distaste for the previous Bow Hero had shot too much higher, and almost dangerous levels, and he already had the teen in very low consideration as it was.

Looking back at the chart they had made for the association, Ryou returned to his studies. After all, learning to read, would open up a lot of doors for him.

_Now is just a matter of association, and re-formatting my brain…_

* * *

In the evening after dinner, Ryou had taken the first turn at watching the mysterious egg as agreed, while Rishia retired for the night.

He took the time to delve into the upgrade system, and finally powered up something with it, just to test the waters. The final result…

**[Great Fang Bow + 4 - Uncommon - Awaken- Equipment Bonus - + 12 Attack, Rapid Shot - Special Effect - Attack Speed Bonus (Medium), Projectile Speed Bonus (Small), Piercing Bonus (Small) ]**

Looking at his upgraded bow, Ryou was left amazed at the increased in stats, and it wasn't even that big of an upgrade, he had been mostly playing around with the system. However Upgrading with Tempering required Ores, and the ones he had managed to collect were very low quality, the same could be said for the souls of monsters, and because of that, he had refused to use the Enhancement's system for now. The other problem was Energy points... those were currency he could use to get stronger, however as with every amount of currency he had a limited amount, and even if he could, in theory, acquire an infinite amount of them, it would still take time. So instead of wasting them on a single weapon all at once, Ryou had decided to use only half of what he had managed to save, especially since they were used in different systems.

The reason behind choosing the Great Fanged Bow, instead of the ones he had gotten from the Chimera was simple.

_The Chimeric Dragon Bow is inherently a fire-based weapon, just like the Chimeric Goat Bow is a Crowd Control one, so It's better that I focus on a neutral weapon for now…_ That had been the thought process, behind that decision, along with the fact that the Great Fanged Bow had served him well, up until now.

Opening his Status Window, Ryou quickly focused his vision on the Passive Skill Tree, bringing up his own Strengthening Method. Eying it for a few moments he brought up the first, obligatory node.

**[Agility Attribute Increased by 0.5%]**

Selecting the confirmation option, he saw the number of skill points available go down by one. The upgrade was minimal at best, though the percentages did increase down the line, or on specific clusters, and even if he could only reach something like thirty percent overall, it was a point three multiplier to one of his main stats, and that was nothing to scoff at.

Beyond that node, lay two different branches, and analyzing them for a few minutes, he came to a decision. One followed nodes that were attack specific, focused mostly on his attack speed and damage. The other one - the one he had chosen, was a slightly more defensive one, or perhaps versatile was a better way to put it. Bringing up the first node from that specific branch he took a moment to consider his options once more.

**[HP increased by 1% / Movement Speed Increased by 1%]**

_While it's true that a ranged character should focus mostly on damage, this isn't a game and that's truly what matters here…_ He considered, leaning back on his elbows. Unlike Naofumi, Ryou couldn't tank hits at all, not with his very feeble defense, even armor could only do so much, so in the beginning, he had decided to focus on speed, because not getting hit was also a very good defensive mechanic. While he had been able to get by using that tactic he knew that eventually there would be a need to take a more back-line approach on most occasions, even if he hated the idea of leaving his future party members on the front lines.

There also existed the counter-point to that mentality, and that had been what made him chose a more speed focus approach.

_On monsters sure I can get by standing in the back, but I have to be able to deal with stuff on my own…_ There was also the fact that people like Glass, and L'Arc could easily just avoid his party members and go straight for him. No matter how game-like the world was, there was no such thing as aggro, or at least not on anything more intelligent than the average critter, so being able to dodge, and avoid attacks was still his strategy for staying alive.

_Especially since unlike fantasy, here there is no such thing as plot armor…_

The other point that made him, chose a slightly more diversified route, had also been the deal breaker on the entire thing. Down that path, the branch intersected with the first cluster where he could find nodes that increased his party members attributes, and that had immeasurable value. Any node that multiplied his stats would be amazing, especially those that affected more than one thing, like the previous one, however one single node that affected anyone besides him would be exponentially more important. He had two and a half members currently, but eventually he would want to add more members, even if finding people he could honestly trust would be a challenge in on itself.

_Worst case scenario, I'll just sacrifice all of my remaining sanity and buy a bunch of Filorial eggs, trading what little mental stability I still have, for an army of Filorial Queens might be a good idea…_ He acknowledged half-halfheartedly repressing a shudder. Ryou had nothing against Filo in general, it was the opposite actually, but she had been a handful, and the idea of multiple ones was in its way a terrifying one.

Turning his attention back to the Passive skill Tree he continued to follow the path to the party member cluster, even if he knew he would be lacking a couple of points to reach it, he did get however a couple of stray nodes for his party, though he very much doubted Rishia would even begin to notice the difference. He bounced the idea of using his Energy Points for skill points a couple of times, before dismissing it. He didn't have that many to even make a noticeable difference, so it was better to save them for later use.

Thankfully the Passive Skill Tree had an option of summarizing the bonus from all nodes currently taken, and that made everything a lot easier to keep track of.

**[Max HP Attribute Increased by 12%]**

**[Max SP Attribute Increased by 8%]**

**[Max MP Attribute Increased by 6%]**

**[Agility Attribute Increased By 12.5%]**

**[Attack Attribute Increased by 9%]**

**[Magic Attribute Increased by 3%]**

**[Defense Attribute Increased by 3%]**

**[Attack Speed Increased by 6%]**

**[Movement Speed Increased by 11%]**

**[Potion Efficiency Increased by 4%]**

**[Party Members HP Increased by 3%]**

**[Party Members Attack Increased by 1.5%]**

Ryou went back to his character profile menu, and with a flick of his wrist, he brought the upgraded bow into existence for a few moments, watching as his stats skyrocketed even more.

_All-in-all, I'm more than twice as strong as I was yesterday, as far as numbers go, and that was just based on a very few mild upgrades, unfortunately even those numbers can only get you so far, after all, that was exactly the reason why Naofumi started looking for other ways to increase his strength, but there's still a long way to go before I hit any kind of ceiling…_ Ryou acknowledged mentally, his eyes on the embers cracking in the fireplace. With a sigh, he banished the bow and leaned back until he was laying down on the wooden floor on top of a blanket Rishia had given him. Northern Village as the name implied was to the north, and far above the sea level, so the temperature was a lot colder, at least at night.

Small noises echoed in the darkness, alerting Ryou that he had company. Turning his head, he found Rishia with a glass of milk in her hand, taking a seat on the couch behind him.

Looking at the girl Ryou took a minute to observe her. She was covered in a white blanket, her eyes half opened, probably from the fact she had just woken up. Her green hair cascaded along her back, some escaping to the front and Ryou not for the first time found himself fascinated by both the length, and the color. Finally, she curled on the couch, pulling her knees to her chest, enshrouding herself in the blanket…

_She looks really small, and fragile like that…_ Although he knew personally that, that description was far from the truth, at least the fragile part was.

The girl in question covered her mouth to try and prevent the yawn, that still manage to escape her, before rubbing her eyes slightly and turning to him.

"Fuee… Ryou-sama it's my turn now…" Her voice was heavy with sleep and came out almost like a mumble that put a smile on his face.

"I know…" However, the Bow hero did not move to raise himself from his spot, far to content receiving the warm from the fire. After a few moments, she shifted in place, before voicing her thoughts once more.

"Ryou-sama you should really go to sleep, it as been a long day, and I know how much you like your rest…"

_Yeah, no…_ Since she was still half asleep, Ryou had been almost inclined to give her a pass, but he quickly decided against it. Calling him lazy was something that could not go unpunished.

Grabbing the blanket under him, Ryou made a ball out of it, and threw it at the half-asleep girl, who raised her arms in defense, releasing a "Mep". As the projectile hit her arms, it was sent upwards before coming down landing on top of her head.

"Get out of here you! You have no room to talk since you can sleep through a stampede even if its happening right next to your head!" Ryou chastised her in jest, watching in amusement as she blinked twice, before grabbing the projectile, and hoarding it against her chest having no intention of giving it back. her lips taking a turn down forming a small pout.

"Fuee… I think Ryou-sama is projecting himself on me for some reason…" She quipped, making Ryou release an amused if ugly snort.

_Well, aren't you cheeky all of the sudden…_ The shy girl was slowly but surely getting a little bolder, and that was actually a good thing.

"On a side note Rishia, when are you going to stop adding the honorific to my name?" Ryou questioned, his eyes going back to the fireplace.

"W-What?" The green-haired stammered not understanding the question.

"The honorific... I understand if you get self-conscious of dropping it in public, but when it's just the two of us, it's fine... I don't care much for it, actually, I would even prefer if you didn't use it at all." During his childhood days, they were a big thing, but after his paternal grandmother passed away, his family had moved to his mother's home country, and Ryou had lost all need to use them.

_You kinda get desensitized when your friends greet you as Cunt or Bastard…_

"Fuuee! I-I could never! That would be too disrespectful!" She exclaimed in a slighter high pitch.

"Rishia… Naofumi calls me an ass, or bastard every two seconds when I'm in his company… Do you honestly think I'll take offense if you call me without the honorific, especially since your the person that I'm closest to, and my partner?" Ryou couldn't understand that thought process. He hardly cared for what Naofumi called him, so what was up with that? They were close enough to not have that wall between them, at least in his opinion.

"B-But…" Rishia stammered looking slightly flushed and hugging the blanket tighter.

"Come on... Is it really that hard?" If possible the girl shrunk even more, and Ryou wondered if she would suddenly collapse into a singularity at the rate she was going.

"Fuee… Then R-R-Ry-Ryou…-san…" Ryou face-palmed, she had been so close.

_Well at least its progress, even if small…_ Ryou conceded, before exhaling a small annoyed breath.

"Good, now you just need to stop midway...Close your mouth after you say my name…" Ryou instructed, and the poor girl squirmed a little at the request, before focusing and taking a deep breath.

"Fuee… R-R-Ry-Ryou…" The Bow Hero had to make an effort not to laugh at the sight, she had done as instructed if a little extreme, since Rishia now looked like a puffer-fish with how she was holding her breath and was turning an interesting tone of red.

"Good Job knew you had it in you, Rish." Ryou congratulated with a thumbs up.

The Green haired girl's cheeks immediately deflated, her eyes almost popping out with how wide they had become.

"R-R-R-Rish?!" She sputtered, both extremely embarrassed, and confused. Ryou crossed his arms and closed his eyes before launching into an explanation.

"Yup, honestly Rishia is a little bit of a mouthful, so I made use of my amazing wisdom and decided to shorten your name, unless you disapprove?" Said girl just buried her face in the blanket, but shook her head negatively.

"Well, then it's settled! Now with this done, I'm going to turn in for the night, a pillow with my name awaits me…" He rose himself, before stretching, and making his way towards the stairs that led to the second floor where the bedrooms were located.

It wasn't until he was almost halfway through the stairs that her voice reached him again…

"R-Ryou…" He had to hide his smile at hearing it, before turning to look at the top of her head, since she wasn't looking at him.

"Yeah Rish?" He asked doubling over the handrail to get a better look at her.

"Raphtalia-chan, she as a slave seal on her, right?" Rishia questioned in a very low voice.

_What's with that question, especially since she already knows that for a fact?_ He wondered confused.

"Yes, why do you ask?" Ryou asked, noticing the girl, had her face turned towards the fire.

"S-She was freed from it, at t-the castle... So why d-did she decided to get it again? I d-don't think there was any need…" Ryou hummed, collecting his thoughts, his sight also falling towards the fireplace again.

"You're right in thinking there was no need, and I think everything would have worked out even without it. However you're missing the true point behind her decision, and even if I completely disavow the notion of someone owning a person, I can at least acknowledge the reason behind it, and that was the important part, it was her decision in the end…" the corner of his lips when up a little, "…As for the why? Well… There's a saying in my world that summarizes her actions quite well, and it goes more or less like this…' To love someone is to give them the power to hurt you, and trust them not too'."

"L-L-Love?!" Her voice came out in a high pitch.

Ryou released a small chuckle, "Well I don't think those were her exact feelings when Raphtalia made her decision, at least not in the manner your thinking about…" N_ot yet at least, though she does have her work cut out for her, but when you add the age issue it just becomes kinda weird, even if that's mostly my world's standards talking…_ "…but the meaning still holds. She freely gave Naofumi the power to hurt her, even kill her, and trusts him enough not to do it." Ryou finished, and both of them fell into silence, deep in thought, only the small crackling of the embers could be heard, until Rishia broke the silence.

"Fuee… S-Since I-I joined you… Since I joined this party, I-I've always been wondering what I can be… What's m-my role in this party… Raphtalia-chan is N-Naofumi-sama's sword, and I-I am your p-partner… That's what you keep saying, b-but what meaning does that word, t-that position holds for you?" She asked in a mumble, and if it wasn't for the silence around him, Ryou doubted he would have understood the question.

"Well…" Ryou began turning his eyes towards the ceiling, "...I suppose, what it means is that I don't want an underling, and hero relationship, but for us to stand on equal grounds… I want someone to watch my back as I watch theirs, and to stand by my side as I stand by theirs… Like walking side by side with me everywhere, not just in battle...Kinda like that, I think..?" He honestly found it difficult to put the whole thing into words, it was the feeling behind it that mattered, so he thought it would be self-explanatory.

"Fuee! I-I'm g-going to get a-another glass of Milk!" Rishia yelped suddenly, jumping away from the couch, and disappearing into the darkness towards the kitchen in an instant.

_What the?! What's up with that reaction?_ Ryou just stood there dumbfounded looking towards the direction the girl had disappeared. After a moment he scratched his head wondering if he should go after her or not, before deciding against it and moving upstairs.

"I never understood the thought process of women in my old world, and apparently the same applies here…" Ryou mumbled to himself before he too disappeared into the darkness.

* * *

The following day, Ryou had awoken with a new idea, or maybe not so new but it would be beneficial to Rishia, and for himself. After breakfast, Ryou had questioned Almond if he had any guards to spare, and the man confirmed that he could indeed spare a few guards for a couple of hours at least.

Ryou wanted to hit the Northern Cavern as quickly as possible, however, it would be a bad idea taking something as fragile as an egg to a place that was supposedly filled with strong monsters, so he decided to wait at the very least until the weird thing hatched. He hoped it wouldn't take too long, because then the only alternatives were either go alone without Rishia, or they would leave the egg behind, and none of those options were particularly appealing.

So now Ryou was seated on the porch, as Rishia spared with a guard. The poor man had a hard time keeping up with the smaller girl, the only thing that prevented him from losing outright was experience, and that was exactly what Ryou hoped, Rishia would gain from this.

Watching as she approached the guard far faster than the man could move, a stab aimed at his shoulder with a shout, yet the man quickly deflected the strike sideways, yet he was unable to capitalize on the small opening because she threw a kick that the guard almost failed to avoid. Finally, they separated themselves, to catch their breath…

_Increasing attributes is all fine, but it only works well against mobs, anything with more intelligence than rock might be able to cross that gap, even if it's large…_ Ryou thought as Rishia clashed with the guard again, her rapier meeting his sword in the middle.

Ryou had partly stolen the idea from the Queen, because he had remembered while in bed that even if she was at a much lower level, Eclair had been able to easily surpass Ren with technique alone.

_If you take the Spirit Turtle from the equation, then most of our future enemies will be mostly human, so I can't count on attributes, and skills alone… _Glass wasn't just strong because her level was higher, although her strength still eclipsed Ryou on that front at the moment, but because she also was an exceptional warrior…

_I need to find sparring partners too, and polish my skills even if it will be a pain in the ass…_ It would be something he would have to add to his schedule when possible, especially after the queen's return.

In reality, most of his fights had been against monsters, with the small clash with the maid being his only true fight.

_I could only get a draw, and her specialty isn't even combat, if anything she's the living definition of a spy or saboteur…_ That was a painful realization to reach. No matter how strong he was, or how high his level was, he could still lose without the necessary experience to use his abilities.

_I'm pretty sure I can take Motoyasu, Naofumi and probably Ren now, even with the level gap, but two of those three are hardly high standards to have…_ Ryou placed his chin on his palm. If the other two heroes applied themselves, they would be a terrifying force to deal with, unfortunately, that wouldn't happen for a long time...if ever...

The guard finally conceded the match, before going to the side, another heavier guard took his place, eyeing Rishia with caution. It was almost hilarious, the man was twice as big as his partner yet he was cowering, under her focused look.

_Well then again, Fitoria probably only reaches my chest if that, and she could make me the second coming of Neil Armstrong with a single kick if she tried hard enough…_ Size truly meant nothing in this world…

Ryou continued to watch, as Rishia took on all four of the knights, getting ready for a second round although she was sweating and panting a little. In an hour Ryou watched as she began to pick a few things, and her stance became a little tighter.

It was at that moment, watching Rishia sparing, that another memory appeared in his mind for some reason… One that filled him with melancholy, but most of all sadness.

**Flashback**

"Hey, Big Brother look! I can swim now!" A small girl exclaimed, waving one hand, and Ryou could only shake is head.

"You know shrimp… It doesn't count if you have a ball under you…" Ryou interjected prompting a pout from the small girl on the pool.

"Bahhhh, It soooo counts! As long as I'm standing above the water, I'm swimming!" Ryou chuckled at that, shaking his head again, before leaning back to move his head into the shadow, his brain was starting to fry under the sun.

"It doesn't work like that… Icebergs stand above water, yet you can't call that swimming can you?" He watched as his sister, made a move to stand before losing her balance, and fell into the water. Ryou erupted with laughter at her clumsiness. After a moment she appeared again, spitting water before sending him a glare.

"Stop laughing you idiot! Icebergs are made of water, and water can't swim on water so that doesn't work, you idiot of a brother!" Ryou only slapped his face with his hand while he kept chuckling, his sister never stopped to be entertaining…

**Flashback End**

"Ryou-sama you seem to be lost in thought…" A voice interrupted his thoughts, and Ryou quickly wipped away the traitorous tear that had managed to escape.

"Yeah... Just, you know... Memories…" Lord Almond, hummed in consideration, before taking a seat next to him.

"A sad one was it?" He asked after a beat, and Ryou shook his head lightly.

"No, it was a happy one, about my family, from a long time ago…" Ryou answered, the words coming out before he had time to consider what prompted him to answer honestly.

"That's right… You were summoned from your world, so you have a family out there, as well as a home…" Almond commented, remembering that particular fact.

A small humorless chuckle made its way out of the Bow Hero's mouth, "What's left of it at least… And, I would be hard-pressed to call that place home, it was mostly a place where I lived, filled with painful memories..."

Almond hummed again, and crossed his leg, watching with no small amount of pride as his daughter tore through the poor guards, that were finally running out of steam even when they had been taking turns to rest.

"Then maybe you will be able to make a new home here…" Almond proposed, and Ryou scoffed at the thought. He didn't hate this world, not to the degree that Naofumi appeared too, but he would be hard press to call it his home either.

"It's not that simple Lord Almond…" Almond chucked at the answer even when Ryou sent him a less friendly side glance.

"It probably isn't to you… You, youngsters, like to overthink things, and make everything more complicated than it has to be…" He commented with amusement. Ryou scoffed again, turning to the front even if deep down he knew the man's words had some truth to them.

Finally, the last guard, the biggest among the group gave up and offered his hand to Rishia. The green-haired girl was panting and almost tripped on her feet trying to reach the outstretched hand, much to the amusement, and disbelief of the other guards. The guards then formed a semi-circle in front of the girl and started talking, along with hand gestures that indicated they were commenting on her performance.

"Ryou-sama, do you know why I call this place my home?" Almond asked out of the blue, however, the hero remained silent.

Since the Hero offered no response, Almond answered his own question. "Its because this is where the memories of Rishia and my dear wife are… From the moment she was born, until today… So as the man of the family it's my job to make sure, this house... This place remains unchanged, to preserve those memories… That way when they return, they can come to a familiar, and warm place, one full of happiness, and love…"

_A place where someone is still thinking about you, that's a place you can call home…_ Ryou didn't know why that particular phrase had come to mind at that moment, but it got him to consider his situation.

_I wonder if you are thinking about me shrimp… I wanted to see you, even if it was just once, just to say goodbye…_ Since setting foot on Melromarc, Ryou had pushed those thoughts, and feelings to the back of his mind, even keeping himself busy, or hunting monsters… However Northern Village had made him recall long lost memories, and he couldn't stop the thoughts from resurfacing, as well as the pain.

"If a home is a place where memories are, or where people are thinking about you, then… My home is probably forever out of my reach." Ryou whispered, leaning back to look at the blue sky, his hand rising trying to grasp something just out of reach.

"That's why I told you to try and make a new home here… It doesn't have to be now, or even the next month… However as you create new memories, you will find that you might just make a home for yourself even if you don't realize it…" Almond explained, making Ryou release a shaky breath.

_I might not ever make it back to my world…_ Naofumi was sure they could return to their original worlds, but Ryou had serious doubts about that. Unless the summoning ritual could be reversed to a 'T', or they were sent back to their original worlds after the waves were done, then it would probably be all but impossible. The mages from the court did say they could return after the waves were over but Ryou took that information with a grain of salt.

_If multiverse Theory rings true, and it does appear that's the case, then there's probably an infinite amount of universes out there...If that's the case, then finding ours is all but impossible…_ The Bow Hero had already decided to live his life and make the most of his second chance, however, that didn't mean he could ever forget about is first one.

_Even then… I suppose I have to start letting go…_ He would miss his little sister until the day he died… But until then, he had to at least try, and make the most out of it, he wouldn't be able to look his parents in the face, if the other side existed if he didn't do at least that much.

_…and I suppose after the waves are cleared, I'll need a place to live…_ Looking at Rishia who had taken a seat on the ground resting, his eyes met hers, and she waved in his direction. Raising his hand he sent a lazy wave in her direction, yet at that moment another image stacked on top of what he was seeing, one of a little girl in a pool also waving at him.

A sad smile formed in his face, and with watering eyes, Ryou waved at her too… One final time... The image vanished, as quickly as it came leaving only Rishia.

Closing his eyes, Ryou took in another shaky breath…

Maybe one day, I'll be able to call this world mine, and maybe if I keep making memories here, I'll be able to make a new home for myself… With that conclusion, Ryou got up, and stretched himself, before making his way towards his partner, who was, slowly but surely becoming one of the fundamental cornerstones that would make the foundation of his will to defeat the waves, and to defend the world...

* * *

_Next Chapter - Enter Quartz..._


	23. Enter Quartz

**A/N - **Here it is, the next chapter, unfortunately, I don't know if next weak I'll be able to post, since its Christmas and all that, so next chapter might drop a little later. That Being said I finally caught up with the latest volume of the LN, and even if I had already read it in the WN it was still pretty sad to re-read Atla's death.

Unfortunately I had to start re-writing the drafts for almost half of this new arc, because there were a few things I had to add/change, (Mostly some canon inconsistencies that I was not aware off between the WN, and the LN), so that also plays a role in having too slow down the chapters release, especially since this is an A/U, and I want to keep things consistent even as I change the overall plot.

Well with that out of the way, here we go. Where Ryou continues to multi-task, the mysterious egg finally hatches, and the Bow Hero as to assume a role, he though he had left behind in his old world.

* * *

**Chapter 23. Braving Into a New World: Enter Quartz**

After Rishia had her turn sparring with the guards, Ryou decided it was time for his turn. Unfortunately, melee was awkward with a bow, and plain hand-to-hand combat would just be unfair. For one Ryou was even faster than Rishia, and even if the guards had reach going for them, the Bow Hero could see any attack coming almost before it begun.

It was one of the side effects of stacking agility. If Ryou focused enough, time seemed to slow down, yet his body still moved at the same speed, and while it was an amazing feeling it had taken a bit to get used to it. What Ryou could understand, was that his Legendary Weapon had been kicking his perception into overload, however, he had a feeling there might be limits.

_There's only so much you can speed up, without messing with the speed at which information travels in your brain, and eyes, though since this world is ruled by game-like mechanics, maybe it already does__…_

After crossing ideas with the guards they finally met a consensus. Ryou would stay mostly on the defensive against all four at the same time, trying to dodge attacks in a small area or parry them with his bow.

It was a frustrating session, to say the least, but it further proved his point. The guards while much weaker than him had pretty good teamwork, so where one stopped attacking the other was already in mid slash. Weaving, and deflecting sword attacks with a bow wasn't easy at all, but it was certainly something Ryou had to learn.

_I already know I can__'t always stay at range, and there's no proof I will always be the fastest thing on the field…_ Ryou acknowledged while sidestepping another overhead slash, before using his bow to stop the sword that tried to put a very nasty gash in his hip. The sword was deflected successfully, however, Ryou couldn't completely avoid the third attack that came for his arm, and he gritted his teeth as the tip of the sword, slashed his bicep.

The guards stopped, all of them taking a step back panting heavily, and so did Ryou who was now sporting a collection of light scratches, and a couple of gashes.

"I think that's enough, for now, Yuusha-sama, you are certainly a strong opponent even at such disadvantage, but that's to be expected…" The biggest of the guards commented, and Ryou gave him a small grin.

"Yeah, I think we should call it quits. You guys have pretty good teamwork…" Ryou commented and the four stood a little straighter at the praise.

After waving them goodbye, Ryou turned to walk towards the porch, a little bruised, but overall feeling slightly better after the workout, that had lasted for nearly two hours.

_Close quarters are my biggest weakness, sure if its normal monsters then it's fine, but this just further proves my point, even if it's painful__…_ Ryou was lazy, but he knew the value of hard work, especially if it was directly tied to his survival.

"Fuee...Ryou-sa... Ryou are you alright?" Rishia asked worriedly, eyeing his injuries, Ryou gave her a thumbs up, the movement almost instantly accompanied by a small grimace.

"Rish, can you do your thing please?" Ryou asked. There was no need to spend a healing potion on mostly superficial wounds.

"Yes, just take a seat." The green-haired girl patted the place next to her twice, however, she quickly avoided his eyes the moment he met her gaze. Ryou was left slightly puzzled at the action, but before he could question it, Almond made himself heard.

"Ryou-sama wasn't four at the same time a little too much?" The Noble questioned with a small frown from his place on the porch.

Taking a seat next to Rishia, Ryou closed his eyes enjoying the feeling of warmth that coursed through his body for a few moments before answering, "Not really… I need to get used to this kind of skirmish if I am to grow stronger…"

Ryou heard the noble hummed in acknowledgment before he got up, and dust himself.

"If you think this is the correct path, then don't let me deter you, however, do exercise some moderation." The noble advised, making his way into the house.

After Almond left, both Ryou and Rishia stayed in silence for a little while, the Bow Hero enjoying the sun, and the feeling of healing magic, until he decided to break the silence.

"So, how was it?" Ryou asked.

"I-It was very productive, and I learned a lot!" Rishia exclaimed, and he could almost detect a very small hint of pride in her voice, as he felt her magic dispersed from his body, leaving no trace of the previous gashes.

Finally finished, Ryou opened his eyes to inspect himself, before laying down on the wooden floor, with his hands behind his head. "Yeah, I noticed you were picking up things pretty quickly... Those poor guards never stood a chance."

The girl flushed a little before shaking her head, "That's not true, they were very proficient."

Ryou turned his head to look at the girl, who was seated on her knees next to him.

"Never said they weren't Rish, there was no point if that was the case, however, you can't deny that by the end of it you were running circles around them." Ryou pointed out.

Once again his partner lowered her head and shrunk a little, something that annoyed Ryou.

_There's being humble, and there's this__…_ While there was nothing wrong with being shy, Rishia, however, doubted her abilities when there was no reason for it. In battle, she turned into a very competent warrior, however outside of it she immediately returned to her shell, even if she was getting a little bolder.

Taking in a breath, Ryou decided to address the issue, "You know Rish, there's a problem when one overestimates himself, but it's equally as bad when someone underestimates his abilities. I don't know why you put yourself down like that, but take this as the word of The Yumi-no Yuusha… Your strong, and both of us will only get stronger. Okay?"

Her head shot up, and her eyes widened a little, but finally, a determined if small smile appeared on her face.

"O-Okay, if the Yumi-no Yuusha-sama says so." There was no mocking in that statement yet Ryou couldn't help but to feel she was making fun of him.

_She is definitely getting cheekier that's for sure..._Ryou acknowledged with amusement, before shaking his head.

"Unto a different subject… How good are you with a pair of scissors Rish?"

"Fuee..?"

* * *

The next five days passed mostly the same, during the mornings they would spar with the guards, sometimes even going for a full battle royal. After lunch Ryou and Rishia would move to the woods, to grind. The area around the Northern Village was mostly peaceful much to Ryou's annoyance, however, they did come across some wild-life, mostly consisting of wolves (At this point Ryou was seriously pondering if it was the work of karma, and if in a past life he had been some kind of wolf hunter), Northern Spiders, (Once again Ryou had to consider if it wasn't karma), and a few sloth monsters aptly named Giant Sloth, since they were the size of a fully grown man.

**[Giant Sloth Bow - Equipment Bonus - + 4 to Attack, Stamina Bonus(Small) - Special Effect - Attack bonus (Small), Agility penalty (Small)]**

Ryou had mixed feelings about that bow in particular, the stats weren't spectacular but it was worth mastering, especially since the ability allowed him to last longer in battle even if levels by themselves were doing miracles as far as his physical conditioning went, and he didn't know if it was him being paranoid or not since Rishia's face had hardly changed when he mentioned his new bow, but he had a feeling deep down she felt amused at him having a sloth themed bow.

Another positive of having access to the information from Motoyasu, and Ren, was that monsters now dropped items. He couldn't understand how a wolf could produce a piece of armor, but it happened from time to time. From swords, to daggers even spears, along with other miscellaneous items, the range of drops he now got from monsters became much bigger.

The one thing that they dropped in great amounts were herbs, some of them somewhat uncommon, but almost all of them were used in the production of potions, like the Soul-Healing Water that recovered SP, and the Magic-Recovering Potion that as the name implied recovered MP.

_I have to start thinking about dipping my hand in Blending, especially now that we are venturing into the wilds, and there isn't an Apothecary a few streets away..._

Unfortunately, ores, just like Motoyasu had explained were a rare commodity. The power-up items only dropped every once in a while and weren't of particularly high quality. That was something Ryou had begun to understand, while there was no indicator showing the chances of successful tempering, some ores had better odds of raising a weapon's level.

Souls from monsters, however, were much more common, but the Enhancements they provided were minimal at best, which was to be expected since they were hunting for mostly normal monsters. Ryou did decide to strap a Wolf Soul to his main weapon.

**[Great Fang Bow + 4 - Uncommon - Awaken - Soul of the Northern Wolf(+8 Agility) - Equipment Bonus - + 12 Attack, Rapid Shot - Special Effect - Attack Speed Bonus (Medium), Projectile Speed Bonus (Small), Piercing Bonus (Small) ]**

During the nights Ryou spent most of his time studying Melromarc's language while he watched over the egg. Sometimes, he would try to study while passing back and forth on the ceiling, courtesy of his gripping skill. The Bow Hero was determined to turn a skill that took conscious effort to use, into something that he could use in battle subconsciously, and the only way to do it, would be through repetition. Although he acknowledged that falling on his neck numerous times was an annoying affair, even if he suffered no damage from it. In the first couple of nights, both Almond and Rishia had come down to investigate the crashing noises happening on the ground floor, but after a few times, they decided to ignore it.

Rishia, however, spend her time brushing on her magic knowledge, something that Ryou couldn't help that much for the time being, he did became curious on what she had been working on specifically, only getting worse when she had closed herself, only replying that the old lady from the magic shop in Castle Town had given her advice on a new magic spell.

_Women, and their mysterious ways!_ Ryou had cursed one night when the curiosity got the best of him.

* * *

On his six day in Northern Village, monotony was broken courtesy of Rishia who had awoken him at dawn feverishly knocking on his door.

_Knock...Knock...Knock__…_

"Ryou, Ryou w-wake up!"

The almost shout penetrated his room, and Ryou was on his feet in an instant, fearing the worst. Quickly getting to the door he found Rishia in middle knock, her face a mixture of trepidation, and excitement.

"What's going on Rish?" He questioned with a trace of worry. She looked alright for the most part, even if she was still in her pajamas.

"Fuee! It's the egg! I think its hatching!" She exclaimed with all the excitement of a small child, making Ryou's eyes widen just a fraction. Not even bothering to put on his armor, he was out of his room, both quickly making their way to the living room.

His eyes immediately found the egg, and indeed the Black Monstrosity of an egg was shaking and had a small crack on it. Taking a seat in front of it, Ryou paid no attention, to his partner who was almost shaking from either excitement or apprehension and took out the glass dome.

They both waited breathlessly as more cracks appeared from the egg, and a white light escaped from them.

Finally, a small white-clawed paw, made a hole in the egg, before returning inside, a beam of light now exiting from where the hole was.

A few moments passed, and the egg burst in a flash so bright that forced both to cover their eyes. When the light died downed, Ryou could only watch in disbelief at what came out of the egg, an incredulous small smile making his way to his face.

_No Freaking Way__…_ Ryou thought completely breathless, and Rishia covered her mouth with both her hands, even if a very feminine if muffled squeal erupted from them.

"Grrryyyuuuuu!" The small creature squeaked, and Rishia finally lost it.

"Fuee..! It's so cute!" She squealed, and Ryou couldn't help but agree, even if he still felt breathless. He had known that whatever would hatch from the egg wouldn't be normal, and this might have crossed his mind, but he had never actually considered it.

Finally getting back into reality, Ryou smile widened, and he reached with his fingers, gently scratching the creatures white if slightly rugged neck.

"Hi there little guy…" The creature just purred in delight at the ministrations, before climbing through his arm, and taking a perch on his shoulder.

Mostly covered with white scales, with a turquoise underbelly, four small clawed paws gripped his shirt, a long tail for its size, waving lazily in front of his chest. The creature finally rested its snout against Ryou's face, licking his cheek a couple of times, making the Bow Hero chuckle at the adorable reptile.

_Can it even be considered a reptile though?_ Ryou questioned, taking note of the appendages on its back, however instead of being membrane-like as he had expected, they were mostly covered in white feathers.

"Fuee! I have never seen a white dragon before!" Rishia was over the moon with their new member, petting it softly on the head, and the small dragon just purred, enjoying the attention.

_I have, and it's normally a bad-ass, even if it comes out of a card__…_ Although there were no similarities between the two. From Ryou's understanding, it looked mostly like a western dragon, and it certainly didn't have blue eyes.

"Well, it appears this little guy was quick to claim a spot for the reminder of the morning," Ryou commented amusedly. The creature in question seemed to take a liking at the Bow Hero's shoulders perched there, almost like a scarf.

"Ryou... I think its a she," Rishia interjected, and Ryou tilted his head, before releasing a small hiss. The action had moved their new party member a little, and it had sunk its small claws on his shoulder to get a better grip.

"Easy with the claws buddy, or my shirts won't last long…" Ryou warned lightly, however to his chagrin the dragon just closed its eyes, and almost appeared to release a yawn.

"How do you know it's a she Rish?" Ryou questioned.

Rishia just shifted a little, clapping her hands, before explaining. "It doesn't have horns… Female dragons, either have small horns, or they don't have them at all…"

Ryou made a noise of acknowledgement. Dragon biology wasn't his thing for obvious reasons. After moving slowly he took a seat on the couch gently since the Bow Hero didn't want any more holes on his shirt, or on his shoulders.

"What are you going to name it?" Rishia asked, and Ryou scratched his chin in thought, slightly slouching from the additional weight.

_She's almost completely white so...Tsuki? Nah__… Tskukihime..? That's a mouthful... At this rate, I'll end up calling her Kaguya, and that's a no-no...Hmmm, Tatsu..? Okay, now I'm just being lazy like Naofumi…_ It was at that particular moment that the Bow Hero decided if he ever had a child, he wouldn't pick the name.

"Rish, my naming sense is complete crap, so why don't you pick?" Ryou almost pleaded to the girl, who pointed at herself.

"M-Me?"

Ryou nodded, and she also took on a thoughtful expression taking a seat on the couch.

Unknown to the little reptile, for the next half an hour, names were thrown, and rejected between the two, until finally...

"What about Quartz..?" Rishia asked, and Ryou pondered on the name, before asking for clarification.

"Quartz as in the mineral?"

However, the girl shook her head lightly,"I was thinking of the gemstone, It's mother's favorite," Rishia added lightly. Ryou for his part couldn't help but draw parallels with a touch of melancholy, his mother had loved quartz jewelry too.

"Your mother's favorite, huh? It's a good name... Well, welcome to the team, Quartz!" Ryou exclaimed yet the dragon gave no sign of approving, too busy sleeping on his shoulder.

"Ryou it already takes after you!" Rishia chirped happily.

"Rish I swear…" Ryou threatened in a mumble. However, the threat went completely over her head.

"B-But it's just like father, and daughter!" She continued, her expression one of complete happiness and her eyes appeared to be almost shining.

"Goddammit, Rish stop saying I'm lazy!" Ryou, almost shouted, but was interrupted by a stinging pain in his shoulder.

"Grrryyyuuuuu!" Quartz growled almost sounding annoyed, and Ryou turned his glare towards her.

"Goddammit Quartz, that's my skin your poking holes in!"

* * *

Ryou spent the rest of the day with a new accessory, namely a draconian one on his shoulder. Thankfully Rishia being the bookworm she was, quickly found out what baby dragons ate, and ate the small thing did… Almost ten times her weight.

Ryou was horrified, the small reptile was a miniature black hole, from cow meat to deer meat, she even ate vegetables and berries. The only saving grace had been the fact that since Ryou had unlocked the upgrade systems, monsters now dropped items but more importantly equipment, and since Gentlewood was gone there were merchants coming in once again, and he could sell some of the leftover items for money.

_I hope her appetite doesn't grow along with her, I'm not sure if I'll be able to break even if it happens..._ Ryou realized while in bed at night, eying the dragon, that had stolen his pillow, and was now sleeping beside his head curled.

Unfortunately, for the Bow Hero, his prayers went mostly unheard…

* * *

_This is Filo all over again, isn__'t it? I already saw this crap happen once…_ Now once again on the porch with his chin resting on his palm, Ryou watched as Rishia played with the not so small dragon. Two days had passed, and it had grown from the size of a cat to that of a medium-sized dog, her appetite growing with her.

_I wonder if it as something to do with this__…_ He wondered looking at the new bow in question.

**[Dragon Tamer Bow II - Common - Awakened- Equipment Bonus - Dragon Growth Correction (Medium), Dragon Maturation Correction(Medium)]**

Rishia had collected the fragments of the egg, and since it was such a weird thing Ryou had gone ahead and absorbed it. The ability unlocked from such a bow was the Grow Correction, afterward, Ryou decided to also absorb some of the feathers Quartz kept leaving behind, and much to his surprise it unlocked what appeared to be a higher variation of the bow. The Bow Hero had thought about the meaning behind the ability since the help menu showed nothing on the subject, and the only thing he had was the literal meaning of it.

_Its correcting Quartz__'s growth, but what determines correct from incorrect growth..?_ Ryou had spent some time mulling over the topic, and the answer had been quite obvious. His status as hero determined that, and since the bonus was medium, it meant that it was slightly correcting her grow to be a companion of a Hero.

Quartz was now rolling on her side as Rishia who was crouched near her patted and poked her belly. Initially, Ryou had been slightly worried about raising what was supposed to be a fearsome beast, but now looking at the two he couldn't help but compare Quartz to a common household dog. The dragon had taken both Rishia, and Ryou as her owners, or family, it was the only reason he could think of as to why it was so friendly, and tame around them. That could also have been attributed to the fact that he and Rishia had taken turns taking care of it, and watching over her while she was an egg, and maybe Quartz had imprinted them even before hatching.

_The most obvious way of seeing her growth, it's both in her size and in her attributes__…_ The day before Ryou had taken the small dragon along on a grinding trip, and her level had increased quite nicely, however it was her attributes that shock him, each level they skyrocketed in a way that made his improvement seem mild in comparison.

_I thought Rishia base stats were mostly average, but looking at Quartz, it just makes her seem bad in comparison__… Heck, it almost makes me look bad, and I'm supposed to be a freaking hero with four different Strengthening Methods!_ Ryou had eventually written it off as her being a dragon, such a creature had been bond to have very good base stats from the get-go, and she had been absorbing magic from the environment even before hatching, that probably had also played a role, along with the _Growth Correction Ability._

_If she grows, as she levels in a few days she won__'t fit in the house..._That wasn't the only problem, according to Rishia adult dragons could get very big, sometimes even to a size comparable to that of an Airbus. While having such an ally was Ryou's almost wet dream, the problem was that he wouldn't be able to feed such a beast, nor would he be able to fit her anywhere.

There was also another thing that kept bothering the Bow Hero. With a side glance, he opened the party menu and eyed it with suspicion for what was now the third time.

**[Quartz - Level - 6 - ? Dragon] **

_I still can't figure out why part of her classification is hidden from me__…_ It had turn like that since she had hatched, and Ryou for the life of him could not understand why his legendary weapon was hiding her classification from him.

_It might be the same as with the Skill Tree__… There are a lot of nodes there that I can't figure out since I don't possess the necessary knowledge… Well at least I know she's a dragon, just not what type she his…_ Ryou admitted silently to himself, before closing the window.

Returning to his thoughts about the Growth Correction, Ryou suddenly had a strange idea, one that needed testing.

_If gathering things related to Quartz, gives me an ability that increases her status, then..._ Getting up, he stealthily made his way towards the two, before crouching behind Rishia without the girl noticing, his hand inching towards her hair.

_Pluck__…_

"Ouch! Fuee..! Ryou, w-why?!" Cried out the girl in shock, hands flying towards her head, grabbing her hair.

"This is for all the times you called me lazy!" He replied before turning around and bringing the hair to the yellow jewel in his wrist.

_Plink__…_

A single bow appeared in the tree, however, it needed five hairs to unlocked. Turning around once more, his grin grew a tiny little more malicious, one that made Rishia take a step back.

"No! You have the same smile as Naofumi-sama!" His smile grew a little bit more at the comparison, and the girl let out "mep!" before turning, and bolting, leaving a very confused dragon behind, whose head tilted to the side watching the interaction.

"Come on Rish, it's for science and magic!" Ryou shouted, running after her, at a mild pace, he was enjoying the entire thing a little bit too much.

"Fuuee! I don't care about science and the only magic that uses people's hair is dark magic and curses!" She shouted back, before continuing her escape, not that it would amount to much.

Eventually, Ryou caught up with her and explained the situation to the girl, who put a few strands of her hair on his hand still looking slightly suspicious. Gripping the few strands of green hair, Ryou brought them once again to the yellow jewel.

**[Comrade Bow - Common - Equipment Effect- Comrade Growth Correction (Small)]**

_Well, it was a stretch but apparently it works__… Wait! If absorbing her hair gives me this, what would happen if I absorb something else from her..?_ Ryou considered taking a side-glance to his partner.

"Hey Rish, can you give me a little of your blood?" He asked offhandedly.

"Fuee! B-Blood?! What kind of bow are you trying to unlock exactly?!"

* * *

"Ryou-sama no matter how you look at it, this is not normal…" Almond trailed off. Ryou released a sigh placing a hand on his forehead.

"Fuee… The village is better now, but it won't have cattle anymore if this keeps up." The girl on his left stated, a little of trepidation on her eyes, looking at what was in front of her.

"Rish, she is already bigger than cattle as it is…" Ryou commented before making his way towards his new party member, that was sprawled on the front of the house, before petting her on the snout. Even lying on the ground, Quartz already had him beat in height, and after measuring her with steps, Ryou concluded the dragon was somewhere around nine meters in length, from the tip of her nose to the end of her tail.

"Well, she doesn't fit inside the house anymore that's for sure…" He commented airily. The snout of the dragon felt leathery, if almost uncomfortably warm. Quartz just opened one yellow slitted eye half-way, before exhaling and closing it again.

_The only thing she does is eat, sleep, and want attention, almost like a baby, but it's hard to treat her as one with this size__…_

"Ryou-sama, what my beautiful daughter is saying is true. If it keeps going like this, the villagers are going to have a hard time… Again..." Taking a look at the sky, Ryou noted it was a nice day, it was rare to rain in Melromarc.

"Come on Quartz, get up! You're going to start working for your food," Ryou ordered, and the dragon released another breath that sounded suspiciously like a scoff from another hero he knew, however, it did raise itself from the ground, opening her wings sending a gust of wind around her.

"She truly is a magnificent creature."

Ryou had to agree, Quartz looked like the very definition of intimidating yet beautiful, "Yeah… Now if she wasn't so expensive to maintain I would be happy," Ryou complained before making his way out of the village, a dragon, and a green-haired girl following behind.

Thankfully the woods were not very densely forested, so Quartz could maneuver in them, through trees, and bushes.

Eventually, they finally found a deer, feeding on berries, near a bush in the deepest parts of the forest, the poor animal didn't even acknowledge their presence or the imminent danger that had just arrived.

The moment Quartz laid eyes on the deer, she pounced on it, sending a small tremor through the ground, her maw separating the head, and neck from the rest of the body before the deer had time to react, leaving only a headless body, that remained standing for a few moments squirting blood everywhere before it tumbled to the ground.

_Crunch..._

_Crunch..._

_Crunch__…_

With each crunching sound, Ryou's body twitched, and he winced, seeing the dragon feasting on the herbivore, her fangs crushing the bones into nothing.

_This is not rated for children__…_ He thought, watching as the blood dripped from the dragon's mouth, and unto the green forest floor. A moment later the experience window appeared, along with the item one.

"At least it's free experience and items…" Ryou mumble taking his eyes from the gruesome sight.

"…i-it also takes care of the food problem…" Rishia added weakly. He realized then there was a limit to how much gore she could watch before it affected her.

The dragon finished the rest of the deer, before licking herself, however, her pristine scales were now tainted in dark red.

A small screech was then heard, and everyone turned to look upwards where a Northern spider had made its web in the trees and was now looking at them, in a posture that seemed to indicate hostility. Movement in the corner of his eyes had Ryou shouting.

"Quartz wait don't! That's…" Crunch! "...poisonous…" Ryou lowered his head and covered it with his arms as green fluids rained on them. A moment later the ground shook when the dragon landed, having jumped almost ten meters off the ground like the laws of gravity didn't apply to her.

Cleaning his face with his arm, Ryou opened the status window quickly and released a breath when he observed, that the dragon was not poisoned. Raising his head, he took in the far too pleased look his dragon was now sporting along with the green blood she now had on her scales.

"Fuee… She's going to need a bath after this." Rishia commented, rubbing her arm against the corner of her armor in an effort to clean herself from the remains of the spider.

Faster than the normal eye could follow Ryou raised his hand in the air, and shouted, "Not it!".

For the next couple of hours Ryou, watched with an equal amount of disgust, and amazement has their new party member feasted on the wildlife, not even wolves were spared much to Ryou's secret delight. Even the Giant Sloths were torn to shreds with violent impunity, despite being at a higher level than the dragon.

When the dragon was satisfied they returned home, and Ryou couldn't help but notice he had almost gain a quarter of the experience required for a level, without doing anything at all.

The problem came during dusk, Ryou had to leave Quartz sleeping in a barn much to the dragon displesure. She had tried and failed to fit her head through the doorway. The Ivyred's would be needing a new door for sure, and maybe a new doorway too.

Taking one last look towards the barn where, Quartz was resting, Ryou let his thoughts wander.

_If she__'s anything like Filo then the next step in all of this will probably be…_

* * *

The first thing he noticed was that it was hot, far too hot, and it was also wet. Opening his eyes he was greeted with the sight of the dark ceiling in his room. His second realization was that he was completely drenched in sweat. The third realization was that he wasn't alone in his bed and that something had an octopus-like grip around his body.

Grabbing the sheet he lowered it slightly, revealing a mop of white hair. Lowering it a little more, the hair gave away to the face of a small girl sleeping. Her face almost melted with his chest, snoring slightly, and a stain of drool clear in his sleeping shirt.

Ryou lowered his head into the pillow without even batting an eye at the sight.

"Called it…", Ryou commented without feeling, before raising his hand with two outstretched fingers, and nudging the girl on the forehead.

Nothing happened, so he applied a little more force, and this time there was a reaction. The girl shook her head slightly trying to get rid of whatever was pestering her, and Ryou nudged her again twice.

Finally, a pair of unfocused yellow slitted eyes opened halfway. With a small yawn, the girl took in her surroundings, head moving from side to side before stopping on his face.

"Good morning," Ryou greeted dryly. The girl released another yawn, rubbing her eyes, with two small fists.

"Onii-shama it's too early…" She mumbled, her voice soft, despise the slight slur, what he hadn't expected was the way she had addressed him, however, he let it slide since there were far more pressing matters to attend.

"Quartz, what are you doing in my bed?" Ryou asked, turning his eyes to look at the ceiling again.

"It was cold outside," She answered, before dropping her head back on his chest.

_That, was a far better, and logical answer then I was expecting__…_ Ryou admitted to himself, nonetheless, he knew he couldn't let his mind wander since there was still another problem to solve, one that he could feel even through his clothes.

"Quartz can you let go, please? I'm kind of melting here…" He requested. The Dragon girl let out an unintelligible mumble, but did has asked, even removing the third appendage that had been around his midsection with an almost iron grip.

"Stay under the covers..."_ For my sanity, and peace of mind,_ "…I'll be right back…" Ryou ordered, receiving another unintelligible murmur in return. Finally free, he quickly made his way out of the bed, and proceeded to exit his room, moving through the darkness, until he reached his destination.

_Knock__…_

_Knock__…_

Nothing happen so he repeated the action, with a little more vigor, after what seemed like an eternity, he heard some shuffling from the other side, and a few seconds later a specter that he could identify as his partner opened the door.

"Fueeeeeee… Ryou, what is it? It's too early…" Somehow Rishia was able to mix her verbal tic with a yawn. Shifting from one foot to the other, Ryou scratched the back of his head.

"Sorry about waking you Rish, but do you have some clothes from when you were little, or even something smaller than what you are wearing?" Ryou asked, and the girl just stood there blinking a few times, for a couple of seconds.

"Give me a second…" She took a step back and closed the door much to Ryou's astonishment.

_She didn__'t even question why I wanted the clothes?_

There was some more shuffling for a couple of minutes, and then she opened the door, her arms filled with clothes.

"Why?" She questioned still seventy percent asleep, and Ryou took the clothes into his arms before turning around.

"Come with me, you'll see…"He motioned for the girl, who followed him wordlessly.

Arriving in his room, Ryou deposited the clothes on the feet of the bed, before shaking a bump under the sheets slightly. From under the covers, the small girl appeared, once again rubbing her eyes, the sheets falling to her waist, and her hair cascaded to her lower back, turquoise highlights shinning in the moonlight that came from the window.

Moving his attention to his partner, Ryou watched as Rishia looked slightly confused, then blinked three times, proceeding to rub her eyes, and blinked again. Realization slowly spread across her face that she was in fact not dreaming, and was seeing things right.

"Fuee! W-W-Why is there a g-girl in y-you're b-bed!" She all but shrieked, and Ryou had to rub his ear at the high pitch sound.

"Onee-shama is really loud when she wants to be…" Quartz commented monotonously, and Ryou snorted at the double meaning.

"That's Quartz, Rish…" Ryou explained, moving to take a seat near the clothes.

"W-What? W-Why? How?!" Her voice was still high-pitched, and her eyes were looking from the small girl to the Bow Hero.

"As I said, it's Quartz. Because it's cold outside, and transformation Magic if I'm guessing right…" Ryou answered each question, while inspecting the clothes Rishia had gave him.

"W-Why is she naked?!" Rishia almost demanded.

"Because she didn't have clothes when in dragon form…" Ryou continued to look through the clothes, trying to find something appropriate.

"Why are you acting like this i-is a normal thing?!" Ryou finally saw something he thought would fit the small girl and handed it to her before replying.

"Because I have foreseen it…"He replied offhandedly, as Quartz inspected the pajama shirt, from various sides, and Ryou reached forward to correct her on where to fit her head.

"W-What?" Rishia just felt incredibly confused, both at what was happening and at the sheer disregard for the situation.

Ryou then handed Quartz a pair of pajama pants, before turning to the front, "Yes Rish, I have used my amazing ability to peer into the events that have not yet come to pass, to foresee this…" Ryou explained with a deadpan, and the green-haired girl just stood there mouth slightly opened.

"Onii-shama, it's itchy, and my tail doesn't fit..."The small girl commented waving her arms. Ryou took a look at Quartz who was swimming inside the pajamas, her hands had all but disappeared under the sleeves, and a tail was poking out of her pants pants. A white scaled tail, almost as long, as the girl was high and twice as thick as her arm.

_Well, that answers what was griping my waist so tightly... Whatever for now it works__… _ Making a shooing motion he ushered the girl to the far corner of the bed, before moving to lay down.

"No griping, and stay on that side, you're like a living furnace, Quartz." Ryou requested, and the girl nodded before laying back down and nesting under the covers.

"Y-Y-You are letting her sleep in you're bed?!" Another almost shriek, and Ryou laid down on his bed, before throwing an annoyed glance in her direction.

"Yes Rish, she as been sleeping here since she hatched, besides it's too early to consider anything else. Go back to bed…" He finished laying his head on the pillow and turning to face the other way, leaving Rishia completely lost in the middle of his room.

Eventually the green-haired girl exited th room, feeling both confused, and suspicious, before stopping and throwing one last glance at the door to the Bow Hero's room, even when his words keep repeating inside her head.

"_Yes Rish, I have used my amazing ability to peer into the events that have not yet come to pass, to foresee this…"_ The green-haired girl shook her head one last and returned to her room also disappearing into the darkness.

* * *

The only sound that echoed around the table were two different sets of munching. Two other pairs of eyes were locked on the new guest, who continued to eat her breakfast completely unperturbed by the gazes on her person.

A cough broke the atmosphere, "Ryou-sama… I stand by what I said before. This is not normal." Ryou wiped his mouth with a napkin and swallowed before replying.

"Rish said that monsters raised by Heroes grow up differently than others, besides I have seen stranger things." Almond just shook his head and decided food was more important at the moment then the insanity that was dealing with one of the heroes.

Turning to look at the mentioned girl, Ryou noted she had a pout on her face and was eying Quartz. She had been giving him the silent treatment all morning too.

"Rishia what's your deal?" He didn't intend for his voice to come out so sharp but he was starting to get annoyed.

Rishia jumped a little at being addressed, before turning to him, and if Ryou didn't know any better he would almost swear she was giving him the stink eye.

"You let her sleep on your bed…" She muttered.

_Ohh for god__'s sake_, Ryou face-palm, lowering his head in exasperation.

"Rishia, it was three in the morning! It was far too early to deal with this shape-shifting crap, or to question the morals behind such a thing. Also, I would like to add she is far from being the first female that as shared a bed with me ." It wasn't like he had done anything even remotely questionable, it was just too early to deal with something, that could easily be dealt with in the morning.

If anything his logic only seemed to aggravate Rishia further, who looked even more upset at the whole situation since she was now crossing her arms.

"If you have such a big problem, she can sleep with you from now on…" Ryou proposed. Quartz only shrugged her shoulders, apparently, the dragon was fine as long as she was warm.

The green-haired girl considered it for a moment before agreeing, and Ryou released a small breath of relief. Quartz even from half a bed away still emitted heat like an oven, and since Rishia was very resistant to high temperatures, it would work out just fine.

"Sounds like a plan then..." Ryou concluded, before shifting to a different topic that had been bothering him.

"Quartz, when you're in dragon form your wings are feathered, so why are they like this in human form?" Unlike in dragon form, in her current form, her wings were while still white, mostly bat-like.

The girl looked at him with a blank expression in her face, and shrugged, returning to her food.

"Can you fly with them looking like that?" Ryou inquired and frowned when the girl's shoulders dropped a little.

"Onii-shama, Quartz doesn't know how to fly…" She replied with a small hint of disappointment in her voice.

_Shouldn't it be instinct? Or are dragons like birds, and they need to fall off the nest..?_ Ryou questioned, before coming to a decision.

"Okay, finish your meal Quartz, after that you're going to have some flight lessons, we can't have a dragon that doesn't fly, that's just silly…" Ryou ordered, and her head perked up a little.

* * *

After they were done with breakfast, Ryou, along with Quartz and Rishia made their way out of the village, through the main gate where there was a big open field.

"First thing first! Quartz, take off your clothes and turn into a dragon," Ryou requested.

"Fuuee! R-Ryou!" Rishia complained fully scandalized. Ryou turned to look at her before the full weight of his statement hit him.

Turning around he covered his eyes with his palms, "Genius, pure genius Ryou... Ahh... If you're old friends could see you now, you would have the cops on your ass so fast you wouldn't even know what hit you." Ryou commented humorlessly. He just racked it up to having to deal with so much daily, it was probably beginning to fry his brain.

A sound of displaced air echoed, and Ryou turned around to the sight of Quartz standing once again taller than anyone present, a bundle of clothes lying next to the dragon.

_Half the shit we pull here would get all four of us arrested, or at least in a very interesting list of people to watch out for__…_ It was a depressing realization to reach, the fact that the only Hero who had yet to commit any crimes, moral or legal ones, was Ren, the youngest of them all…

"Okay Quartz, try to run, then when you gain speed, try to take off by flapping your wings."The dragon just bobbed her head in acknowledgment, before going on her way.

Ryou watched as she went galloping along the field, and finally, with a mighty flap of her wings, she was off, although her movements seemed somewhat awkward. He was about to congratulate her on getting it on the first try when the dragon appeared to lose her balance in the air and came crashing down like a bomb.

The earth shook with the crash, kicking up dust everywhere. Ryou and Rishia quickly made their way to the crash zone.

"Quartz-chan are you alright?" Rishia questioned into the dust cloud worried, another flap of wings sent a gust that cleared the vision.

Quartz looked no worse to wear, and she raised herself wobbling a little, then her visage appeared to scrunch up a little, and she sniffed, her head rearing back, and she sniffed once more

Ryou's eyes went completely wide recognizing the action, an action that anyone who understood anything about dragons, fantasy or otherwise would recognize. In an instant the Bow Hero hooked his arms around Rishia's waist and dived under the dragon.

_Fhroooosssshh!_

Accompanying the roar, the heatwave hit Ryou in the back, and he felt his arms sting a little, as he tried to cover his partner from the flames that were expelled. The entire thing only lasted three seconds at most, before it died down and the dragon shifted carefully, moving to the side, trying to not stump her adopted older siblings.

Ryou raised himself, heaving Rishia back into a standing position before they looked wide-eyed at the destruction before them.

Everything in a twenty meters cone in the front of Quartz had either been burned to a crisp or was still on fire.

_Well if there was any doubt left about her being a dragon it's gone now__… _

"Rish, I'm sorry, but could you do your thing before this spreads any further?" Ryou asked, and the girl nodded, a second later she was chanting, a blue magic formation materializing in front of her.

"_Onii-shama I sneezed..."_ Ryou almost jumped in fright as a voice that certainly wasn't his, appeared in his mind. Looking towards the dragon, he locked gazes with it, and it almost seemed she was peering into his very being.

"Quartz... Was that you?" Ryou asked in amazement, and the dragon inclined her head.

_Telepathy__… She can't fly, but she can use telepathy on instinct?_ He had to wonder what was wrong with the current situation.

_"Onii-shama, I'm hungry__…"_ Quartz's voice echoed in his head, as he continued to watch Rishia conjure up the magical equivalent of a fire hose, swinging it around to extinguish the flames.

"I bet you are..." Ryou replied after a moment, his tone completely bland. He noted that the dragon had even incinerated a poor lonesome tree.

"_Onii-shama, you smell tasty…"_

Ryou just face-palmed, for what was probably the third time, and it was still morning.

"Quartz, just… Just be quiet for a moment." Ryou replied, taking a look at his arm. The hairs there were mostly burned, so it was normal he smelled like roasted pork.

"Fuee... That's everything…" Rishia affirmed, cleaning her forehead of sweat, as she eyed the area in front of her to see if she missed anything.

"Sorry about this Rish," Ryou mumbled an apology. No matter how much fun he made at the girl's expense for her usage of fire-magic, that wasn't an excuse to always have her on fire-fighting duty.

"Quartz from here on out your only allowed to sneeze on monsters, or bad guys." The Dragon tilted her massive head to the side for a moment, then she bobbed it.

"_Only monsters, and bad guys…",_ Ryou also nodded just to confirm, before another far less pleasant memory appeared in his head, his face twisting in disgust.

"Let me add another clause to that. If you see a guy around this height…" Ryou reached with his hand raising it into the air as an example, before continuing "...with blonde hair, a stupid smile on his face, and wielding a spear, you can and will set him on fire on sight." Ryou declared with conviction. He knew what kind of disgusting shit Motoyasu was into, and there was no way he was going to let that creep anywhere near Quartz.

"Fuuee! W-What are you saying Ryou! She might kill Motoyasu-sama!"

Ryou pondered on that for a second before releasing a "tsk" sound.

"Shit your right, Rish…" He paused before raising two fingers towards the dragon,"...Quartz if you see him, you have to sneeze on him twice, one should always double-tap, you can never be too careful!" Ryou declared, crossing his arms with a serious nod.

_"Tall, blond and stupid looking... Quartz understands."_ The Dragon agreed easily.

"Fueee!" Rishia only hid her face in her hands, trying not to cry.

* * *

_Next Chapter: Northern Cavern_


	24. Northern Cavern

**A/N-** Hi guys, I'm back coming with a new chapter. Initial this wasn't suppose to drop until Friday, but I wanted it to drop before new years eve for some reason, don't ask.

Also on another note, I continue to re-write the newest arc, or rather adding some new ideas that have come to me, even if it will still follow the same route more or less, hopefully next week I will be able to resume the normal schedule, of posting once a week, but that all depends if I can finish everything until then. Well part of the blame its mine for always having new ideas that I would like to implement, also you guys are always coming up with great suggestions, that I try to see if I can implement, or at least take something out of it to add, so yeah... Not saying to stop, quite the contrary, I love to read all the ideas, even if they are crazy.

Also next chapter, I will be adding the new bows that Ryou as unlocked so far at the end.

My search for a Beta continues, and its proving difficulty, but hopefully it will work out.

Also on the newest chapter of the Manga, Rishia finally shined, so woot for that one, (Ryou is definitely proud).

With all of that said here it goes, hope you all had a great Christmas, and will be having an awesome New Eve, and remember, if you drink, "try" to do it with some manner of moderation, don't follow my example, I'm going to probably end up passed out on my cousin's couch along with the rest of the crew, as per tradition.

Now then... Where Quartz gets some clothes, Ryou and company make their attempt at dungeon crawling, and a new challenge presents itself.

* * *

**Chapter 24. Braving Into a New World: Northern Cavern**

One thing that Ryou realized when his theory that Quartz would eventually be able to change form became correct, was that she would need clothes- Magic clothes to be precise. Unfortunately, the only place he knew where those could be acquired was Castle Town.

Fortunately, one fact that Ryou had forgotten was that Almond was now Lord of two villages, one that had a tailor who was not only able to weave magic clothing but also had the necessary equipment to do so. Not only that but unlike what Gentlewood insinuated, Almond knew how to manage, and lead a village by example, so both villages were now doing much better then they were previously. So if such an esteemed leader wanted to abuse a little of that power to give Quartz free clothes, Ryou would not have any objection, especially since magic clothing was expensive.

What Ryou definitely objected too was what came after.

"Explain to me again how this is in any way, shape or form considered proper battle gear?" He asked tiredly. The Bow Hero could feel the beginnings of a headache.

"It absorbs the little lady's magic to augment its defensive capabilities Yuusha-sama." The tailor explained patiently.

"I get that… What I don't understand is why does it have frills? Why does it need frills? It has frills everywhere!" Ryou exclaimed, both of his hands motioning towards the newest addition to his party.

"Because it's aesthetically pleasing." The tailor answered with a small smile on his face. No doubt the man felt proud of his work.

Ryou's hands when for his temples rubbing them lightly, "Look... I won't proclaim to be a fashion specialist, but that isn't the point," the Bow Hero interjected.

"Of course it is!" The tailor lowered himself on one knee, in front of Quartz, hands raising as if presenting a masterful artwork." Look at her, she's beautiful!"

Ryou resisted the urge to groan out loud. It wasn't that the dress wasn't cute, Quartz would make a killing in any Cosplay convention, however, that didn't mean it was a something one should wear in battle.

_This! This crap right here is why Motoyasu, and Ren think this is a game!_ Adding a little more force to his fingers Ryou continued to rub his temples and took another look at Quartz. The girl seemed content in ignoring the ongoing debate, choosing to instead spend her time admiring her new dress.

_She looks like a soul reaping Gothic Loli she even as those wings to add to the look__… I just have to steal L'Arc's scythe now…_

Eyes turning towards the ceiling, Ryou wished for some divine intervention, or some form of enlightenment that let him understand the inhabitants of this world, "Rish please say something…" Ryou pleaded towards the ceiling.

Receiving no answer for a few seconds he turned towards his partner, "Rish..?" He questioned with a frown. Rishia's eyes almost looked glazed, and slowly following her line of sight Ryou finally understood what had enamored his partner so, and dread filled him.

"No!" He shouted. The shout made everyone inside the store jump, even a couple of costumers who turned to look at him startled.

"No! Nope! Not happening! Never!" Ryou announced shaking both his head and crossing his arms in front of him forming an 'X', before cutting the air in front.

"But...But its a Usapil costume!" Rishia said, turning towards him, her eyes almost sparkling, with what could only be her very best puppy eyes look.

Regrettably for his partner, Ryou had a younger sister, who besides being an even bigger Otaku then he was, had mastered that look to perfection, so to avoid being bankrupted every time he spent the day with her, he had developed quite the resistance.

Shaking his head, Ryou was quick to lunch an ultimatum, "Rishia, if you buy that I'm changing your nickname to Weirdo!"

"Fueee! W-W-Weirdo!?" The girls shuttered almost in shock.

"Yes, weirdo!" Ryou declared, nodding his head seriously, "Look…Everyone and their mother know, I hate my title, and most of what comes with it, but the very least we should do is look the part. Do you know what we would look like if someone in my party wears that?!" He finished pointing towards the abomination displayed in the corner.

"We would look pretty." Quartz supplied helpfully, looking up to him.

"No Quartz…" Ryou denied slowly, "…we would look like a circus! And we are not supposed to look pretty, we are supposed to look intimidating." Ryou explained.

The small girl blinked a couple of times, then took another look at her dress, one hand gripping the hem.

"Is Quartz intimidating?" She questioned, still clutching her dress.

The Bow Hero, crossed his arms, pondering before nodding. In dragon form, the small girl had been a sight to behold.

"A little bit?" Rishia supplied in a small voice. Ryou strategically ignored her tone since it was obvious she wasn't getting her costume.

"Without a doubt Quartz-chan!" Almond added from his place in the corner of the shop.

The girl continued to play with the hem of her dress, nodding slowly. "Is Quartz pretty?" She questions lightly.

_Is this a trick question?_

"Yes, Quartz your pretty," Ryou admitted, wondering where the small dragon was going with her questions.

"Quartz-chan is very cute…" Rishia followed after a moment later. Her voice still possessing a trace of disappointment.

"It is as my darling daughter says! So worry not Quartz-chan!" Almond once again added.

The girl nodded once more, and standing on one foot she twirled around, the skirt dancing with her, before coming to a stop, "Quartz is pretty… But she is still intimidating, so she can get the dress right Onii-shama?"

Said Hero just let his shoulders dropped slightly at the dragon's reasoning. _Flawless logic right there..._

In the end, Quartz got to keep her black dress. Quartz could change into dragon form so there wasn't that big of a problem even if Ryou wasn't all that happy, though, the costume that Rishia wanted, Usapil or otherwise was where he drew a line and put his foot down. The only way he would even consider such a thing would be if the stats on it completely surpass the ones on her current armor, and as it stood they were much worse.

* * *

A few hours later the party observed the entrance to the Northern Cavern, and Ryou let a breath he didn't know he had been holding. Even if they had much more time he hadn't been able to make nearly as much progress as he wanted. Between watching over Quartz, and everything else he was starting to feel a little restless, especially since the wild-life around Northern Village was mostly tame.

"Quartz since you're still new to this I want you to stay in the back, and let me, and Rish deal with anything that we come across," Ryou commanded while approaching the grand entrance. The entrance itself, a giant hole, in the face of the mountain, one of many that set the boundary between, Melromarc, and Faubley.

The small girl nodded, following along. That had been something that Ryou was truly grateful for. Unlike Filo, Quartz was surprisingly obedient, if it didn't involve the topic of food, and rarely showed much in the way of emotions, unless she was getting petted. Another thing was that she was incredibly intelligent. Ryou knew Dragons were supposed to be full of wisdom, but Quartz had learned how to talk just by hearing them in dragon form, and that happened in days.

Turning to his partner, Ryou saw that she had come to a pause a little behind them a slightly apprehensive look on her face.

"You okay there Rish?" He questioned.

Rishia shook her head slightly, and tried to put on a determined expression, however her apprehension still shined through, "Y-Yes, it's just that father, and the other kids always told scary stories about this place…" She admitted, and Ryou understood the feeling.

_It's like that old abandoned house in your neighborhood, the one that spikes the imagination of every child, and is some times a stage for imaginary horror stories__…_

"It's fine Rish. You aren't a child anymore, nor are you weak." Taking another look, at the entrance, he couldn't completely erase the small spark of apprehension, at what might lie beyond in its deeps. "Besides if worse comes to worst, I'll just teleport us out…" Ryou finished. That would be a last-ditch solution, because of the cooldown, but served as a pretty good emergency escape if needed.

"Right." She said looking slightly more reassured.

"Already, let's check this place out." And with that Ryou took a tentative step into the cavern.

Taking a few steps, he waited for his vision to adjust. What lay before him, was expected if slightly disappointing. The hole opened, into a rather big open area, mostly filled with grey rock walls. Parts of mining equipment half-buried in the gravel, underneath their feet were visible, but nothing Ryou could use to unlock a new bow.

"Would it be too much to ask for a stick of dynamite or two?" Ryou questioned out-loud, kicking the head of a pickaxe out of the gravel. His eyes, following the long walls of stone, that showed signs of having been stripped mine.

"W-Why didn't you absorb some of the explosive powder from Lute village?" Rishia questioned, coming to a stop near him.

With a pointed look, his status window came into view, "I did, it didn't unlock anything." Ryou said. Scrolling down his inventory, he finally found what he had been looking for, and placing his hand forward he brought it out. Mostly black, with a circular glass panel around it, it looked like a completely normal item, if it weren't for the bluish marking on it.

_Human-powered Oil-Lanterns, this is what efficiency looks like_. According to what one of the merchants had explained, they were magically powered mostly. Ryou had been surprised, that they work on a very similar concept as normal lamps. Gathering magic from the user, to power the light spell imbued, before circulating it back to the user, that way the expenditure would be minimal.

Handing one to Rishia, the girl was quick to strap it to her hip. That was another plus of the Magic Lamps, they didn't need to be completely in contact with the user, to draw magic. After also handling one to Quartz, the small girl, tilted her head, as the interior sparked to life, the light illuminating her face. Her eyes shining with childlike curiosity, as she waved the lamp around, her eyes following the light.

Ryou watched, as she continued, twirling around with the lamp, her eyes glued to the light, "Are you some kind of dragon-moth Quartz?" He questioned in a joking manner, patting his lamp, and it too burst into life.

"Fuee, Ryou that's mean…" Rishia chastised him however, it was clear her mind wasn't in it, as her gaze moved from one side to the other, watching the shadows cast by Quartz Lamp with apprehension.

The dragon girl came to a stop from whatever dance she was doing, "It's so pretty Onii-shama, it reminds Quartz of stars." Then her eyes left the light to look at the Bow Hero, her head tilting in confusion, "…Quartz is Quartz, and Quartz is a… dragon?"

_Why did you state it as a question? Don't tell me she's having an identity crisis, a little more than a week after being born__…_ Ryou wondered in amusement, moving slowly into the depths, " That's nice and all, but stop playing with it. Not only was it expensive, but if you break it, we don't have another, so take care of that one."

"Okay…" She answered, her eyes still followed the light very few seconds.

Slowly their lights illuminated, the other side of the entrance area, and Ryou came to a spot near three distinct tunnels. The left one seemed, to go up at a steep angle. The other ones were also angled, but much less severely, and when deeper, probably into lower levels.

_Nothing like an old classic way of choosing things like these__… Eeny, mini, miny, moe, screw me over wherever I go…_ Ryou singed in his head, finishing in the middle path.

"Well let's go that way…" Ryou said motioned with his hand towards the chosen tunnel. With a flick of his wrist, he griped his Great Fanged Bow. Rishia soon followed suit, pulling her rapier out.

After walking for a few minutes, down the tunnel hardly big enough to fit Quartz in her dragon form, Ryou decided to break the silence, the darkness, and the atmosphere itself slightly getting to him, "So Rish, since your such an expert in mining, care to tell me what should I be on the lookout for?"

The girl in question jumped a little, at being addressed, lightly biting her lip, her eyes moving towards him for a second, before they returned to the front, "M-Mithirl veins or deposits are easy to i-identify… They shine, with a metallic blue tint…" She paused, eyes moving towards the walls, for a moment, "You could try using your digging s-skill, but…" She trailed off, looking upwards.

Ryou's eyes also went upwards, and he clicked his tongue, "Yeah, I get what you're saying, this doesn't look like the most stable of tunnels, for me to be poking random holes in…"

His own knowledge about mining and cave exploring wasn't the best, but the stone ceiling above them didn't look all that secure.

"But seriously Rish, where did this interest in mining came from?" Ryou questioned, taking a short glance at Quartz, who seemed to be sniffing the air, before nodding to herself.

"L-Like I said, there were these stories a-about this Cavern, and even if it was scary, t-there was a part of me that was curious, but since we were forbidden from coming here, I just tried to find i-information about it…" She explained, eyes lowering slightly.

_So you decided to study every bit of knowledge you could get your hands on to satiate your curiosity__… Your such a nerd Rish…_He commented mentally, almost fondly, before his eyes come back to the front, and the Bow Hero came to a stop.

In front of the group stood another intersection that branched off into what looked like five different tunnels, all looking the same, in Ryou's eyes.

"I figured this would happen…" Ryou murmured mostly to himself, yet his voice echoed slightly. Opening his Status window he noted that his mini-map was showing only a displaced image almost like static.

_How convenient__… The moment I need it, it doesn't work…_

"R-Ryou we should mark the way, or we will get lost…" Rishia advised, a small tremor still present in her voice.

"Drilling shot!" The arrow flew from his bow, and hit the ground in front of them, creating a swallow trench nearly three meters long. Eyeing the now newly made trench, Ryou examined it for a few seconds, before he unleashed a second shot straight down, at the beginning of the trench. leaving a slightly deeper hole at the beginning of the trench.

"Like this, we will know what way we came from," Ryou said, walking over the trench, and continuing through the middle tunnel

They kept walking for over half an hour, passing other multiple intersections, the air was mostly stagnant, and the only sound besides small talk about mining was their breathing and the gravel beneath them.

Finally in what fell like forever to Ryou, light could be seen at the end of the tunnel of one tunnel, however since the air was still mostly stagnant, Ryou doubted it was an exit. A couple of minutes later his suspicions were confirmed, however, what he saw took both his and his party member's breath away.

Exiting the tunnel, the cave opened in a big open area, far bigger than the initial area. Stalagmites made of pure crystal were present in every inch of the high ceiling, the strangest thing however were the countless green-blue lights coming from everywhere, lightning up the entire cave.

"Fuee! It's beautiful!" Rishia whispered breathlessly.

Ryou couldn't help but agree, his eyes locking on the small crystalline lake in the middle.

_It's almost like we entered an alien planet,_ "It really is amazing…" Ryou whispered, taking in the sight. He doubts that he would ever see such a sight in his old world. Almost like the night sky, only underground.

The movement broke Ryou out of his reverie, and he saw Quartz approaching one of the lights, from the corner of his vision before picking it up. Deciding to investigate what was giving off the light he approached the girl, yet to his complete disbelief, a second later she shoved whatever it was into her mouth, before, munching on it with a few crunching sounds.

Both him and Rishia were stupefied at the sight, mouth dropping open.

The small girl wiped her mouth, with the back of her hand. "Tastes weird…" Her soft voice echoed in the cave.

"Quartz… What the hell did you just eat?" Ryou asked slowly. Something that gave out that kind of light could not be healthy in Ryou's mind.

"It was a weird shiny thing with lots of legs Onii-shama…"

_Lots of legs..? What?_ Ryou questioned, before approaching one of the lights and crouching near it. Observing it, he saw it was what looked like a beetle, with a semi-transparent oval area in its back, where the light passed shine through.

Throwing the dragon girl a slightly disgusted side-look, Ryou was ready to chastise her, however, Rishia beat him to it, with a look that matched his. "Quartz-chan you can't eat that! You have to be careful what you eat, or you'll get sick…" Rishia explained, crouching near the girl.

The small dragon girl tilted her head in confusion."But Onee-shama. How will Quartz know if it's tasty?" The Dragon girl inquired, eyes peering intensely towards Rishia.

"T-That's… Y-You..." The green-haired girl turned towards him for help seemingly at a loss.

Ryou raised an eyebrow before shrugging like it had nothing to do with him. "Ask your Onee-sama, she's the expert."

Rishia, mouth dropped lightly, looking even more lost, "Fuee… I don't… I'm not… I think this is something Ryou should teach." She said, in an attempt to shift the responsibility back to him.

Ryou shook his finger towards his party member, "Nope! She's your responsibility to Onee-sama, so have fun!" Ryou chirped in a happy tone. He could already see it, Quartz grabbing all kinds of critters, and invertebrates, before asking Rishia if they were tasty.

Rishia did try to fight back the decision a little, but between Ryou's pointed look, and Quartz hopeful one, it had been a losing battle from the start.

With that issue settled, Ryou brought the beetle near the yellow gem in his bow. Like any item, it was vacuumed, and the expected warning window appeared.

**[Bio-luminescent Beetle Bow- Common - Sealed- Equipment Bonus - Night Vision Bonus (Small) - Special Effect - Bio-luminescent Light Emission]**

"Change Bow: Bio-luminescent Beetle Bow!" Ryou ordered. A second later he had to squint his eyes. The bow had changed into a light green one, with small transparent crystals, that seemed to emit the same light as the beetles, only hundreds of times far more intense.

_See, you morons__… This is why you should try everything you can…_ His new bow, while not strong, or even something that could be considered combat-oriented was definitely beyond useful.

The bow also gave a boost to night vision, and that was where some strategic thinking came into play. Even if Ryou could see more or less in almost pitch dark, his partners couldn't or at least Rishia wasn't able to, but now with this new bow, the problem was more or less solved. Such a thing would be a bonus if they wanted to expand their grinding time on occasions.

_Well, those two only think in game terms, so perhaps they are even sure that they will respawn if they die__…_

Rising, Ryou aimed the bow down, to get the light off his eyes, before ordering, "Alright let's check this place out."

His party fawned out, and Ryou took look at the crystal formations in the ceiling. A moment later an arrow found its target, breaking it in pieces, that fell down on the ground. Picking a small piece of crystal, hardly bigger than his hand, Ryou observed the gemstone. On closer inspection, he could see that it didn't reflect the light from the beetles, but the crystal itself shined with a soft blue glow.

**[Blue Mascgite Crystal] **

_Never heard of this__…_ Probably some kind of magical crystal, if the way it is shining is of any indication… Ryou considered before letting his Legendary Weapon absorb the new material.

**[Mascgite Bow - Common- Sealed - Equipment Bonus +3 Magic, Magic Defense Bonus(Small), Magic Effectiveness Bonus (Small), Special Effect - MP Bonus(Small), MP Cost Reduction Bonus(Small)] **

_So it is a magic crystal, and if I take the abilities from the bow into consideration, It's probably a good idea to save some of them for future upgrades, especially for Rish... _The Bow Hero decided before picking a few more crystals and shoving them in his inventory.

Exploring the rest of the vast area, Ryou was starting to feel slightly weary, they had gone pretty deep without either opposition nor mithril something that he found strange. He had expected even a couple of monsters.

Approaching the other side of the area, circling the small lake, Ryou converged with his party peering into another tunnel that continued into the depths.

"Onii-shama something smells bad in there," Quartz said, her little nose scrunching up at a smell Ryou couldn't detect.

"Does it? I can't really…" Ryou stopped for a second, peering into the tunnel, "... What's that sound?" He asked confused. It sounded familiar but he couldn't put his finger on it.

"A pig? Here?" Rishia wondered out loud slightly confused.

It finally clicked in Ryou that was what he was hearing, although that only added to the confusion.

_How did a pig end up in this place? Might it be the legendary pig-man?_

Slowly making his way into the tunnel he motion for the others to follow. As Ryou walked deeper the sound became clearer, a mixture of grunts, and snorts, definitely what one would expect from a pig.

The tunnel then made an almost ninety-degree curve, a soft light emanating from just beyond sight. Ryou made a stopping motion with his hand, before taking a peek. He grew slightly annoyed though when Rishia also peered from behind him and shot them a look when Quartz joined the fray.

Walking into plain sight Ryou examined the creature not even five meters away from him, for a moment before giving voice to the thoughts of everyone present.

"You… Are by far the ugliest thing I have ever seen in my life…" Ryou accused, his face scrunched up in almost disgust.

The creature seemed to turn in his direction for a moment, before returning to munch on the black goo on the ground.

_Not only is it ugly but it's also an ass apparently... _

The creature while sounding exactly like a pig looked nothing like it if anything it looked something straight from a horror story. About as tall as Ryou was, it stood on four legs, in a dirty green color. It had no eyes from what the bow hero could see, what he could see however was that half of its oval body was nothing but a giant maw for of spiky teeth. On the other end, were four tails, or tentacles like protrusions, waving in the space. Three of the tentacles ended in a flat shape, with one side full of spikes. The last one ended in some kind of bulbous like organ, that flickered with yellow light.

Looking at the flickering light, Ryou, "I wonder if this is a terrestrial version of a fish from the abyssal zones…" Ryou muttered, aiming at the monster.

"Onee-shama is that tasty?" Quartz questioned, a finger on her lip eyeing the creature.

"Fuee… I don't think so." Rishia answered slight hesitantly. Her eyes also on the monster that was far too comfortable ignoring them.

Ryou continued to eye the monster, his bow lined up with the creature's body for almost half-a-minute, before he lowered it a moment later. Taking one hesitant step, Ryou slowly made his way towards the creature, until he was in touching distance.

"R-Ryou what are you doing?" Rishia questioned. The green-haired girl had followed him until she was halfway between the curve, and the monster, her arm slightly raised in his direction. Quartz tilted her head, right next to her still eyeing the creature.

_This is really triggering me__…_ Extending his hand, Ryou poked the creature's body a couple of times. It's skin both soft and hard at the same time, a strange mixture. Tilting his head in confusion, the Bow Hero rested his palm on the creature, feeling it breathing. The Eldritch Pig, only turned its maw slightly, before returning to eat whatever black substance it was eating.

"This is freaking weird," Ryou said. His palm still resting on the creature's body, his eyes traveling towards the tentacles on the back.

"Y-Yes it is! The fact that your petting that monster, it's very weird!" Rishia exclaimed incredulously.

Frowning, Ryou shook his head slightly, "That's not it Rish. This thing isn't aggressive at all, Why?" The Bow Hero wondered. Every single monster he had come across had been aggressive towards humans, even Usapil's had no problem trying to attack people, yet one of the most menacing creatures he had come across, Quartz withstanding, was passive.

"I don't know… Quartz-chan come back here!"

The small dragon girl completely ignored Rishia's order and came to a stop near Ryou crouching. Raisin her small hand she also poked the creature with her finger a few times. "When are we going to eat it Onii-sama?" She asked a moment later, her eyes skin on the creature.

"Is that all you think about?" Ryou muttered, lowering his arm to the side.

Finally finished with its meal, the creature turned around. Ryou leaned lightly back, as one spiky tentacle passed near his face. The creature slowly made it's way down the tunnel, the flickering light slightly illuminating it.

_Alright then, take me to your leader__…_ Slowly, Ryou began to follow the creature, motioning with its hand for his team to follow, "Come on let's see where this guy is going."

Rishia fell into step with him an instant later, almost tripping in the gravel." Fuee… W-Why are we following it?!" She whispered, her eyes going from the flickering light in front of them, to the Bow Hero's face.

Ryou shrugged his shoulder, but his lips went up a little, "This guy picked my interest that's all."

"T-This is definitely a b-bad idea…" She said, but her voice sound resign.

"There's nine, out of ten chances that your right Rish…" Ryou allowed. He knew that following something out of a horror story was bound to end badly, but maybe something good would come out of it.

The party continued to follow the strange passive creature in silence after that, through a myriad of tunnels. It wasn't until they crossed into a new tunnel, that Ryou realized, that the cavern walls, had been slowly changing in composition, if before they were made of mostly common stone, now the entire tunnel was made from white rock, something that seemed to affect how the light reflected, even the ground was filled with white stones, of different sizes, but most of them somewhat round.

_Probably marble__…_ Crouching on the ground, Ryou grabbed one small piece of white round rock. The Bow Hero inspected the rock from various sides, with an inquisitive look. From what he knew of geography round rocks mostly came from the effect of water eroding them, yet there were no signs of an underground river having passed through the tunnel, especially since the walls didn't show any type of erosion.

Bringing the small rock to his bow, he raised an eyebrow when nothing happened.

"I was expecting to unlock a Marble Bow, maybe with a stone crafting skill attached to it or something…" Ryou muttered, throwing the stone to the side.

Rishia watched the stone path as it hit the side of the tunnel, "Stone crafting… I might have some books back home if you're interested…"

Ryou turned to Rishia exasperated, "Rishia, I can't read yet remember? Besides I was jokin..!"

_Squeal!_

The cry from the pig almost agonizing echoed within the tunnel, followed by a sound almost primal of something being torn apart. Ryou turned wide-eyed, to the front, only to catch the last flicker of light amid the darkness, before it was extinguished.

Eyes narrowing, he raised his bow, to flash some light an instant later towards where the pig had been.

_Jesus__… _The Eldritch Pig, or what was left of it had been torn apart, into something that had almost no resemblance. Blood splattered on the walls near it, running down in small rivulets, staining the white wall in red.

"R-Ryou…" The fearful whisper came from slightly further behind, but Ryou refused to take his eyes off the front. However, try as he might he couldn't find the culprit.

_Where are you, you bastard_… Eyes on the tunnel in front of him, that was mostly straight, he found no traces of what had killed the passive creature. Raising his eyes to the ceiling proved to be just as fruitfulness.

I _remember this feeling though_… Ryou concluded as every hair on his arm stood to no end. The feeling of being hunted.

"Onii-shama, this place smells bad. Everywhere smells bad…" Quartz noted.

At the sound of the dragon girl's voice, Ryou turned to look at her, flashing his bow down the where he had come.

It happened in an instant. The moment he had turned, he felt a shiver go through his spine, and without hesitation the bow hero dove forward. His eyes lock with Rishia's, whose expression changed into one of horror.

_Son of a Bitch!_ Ryou hissed, as plain bloomed from his back, a burning sensation expanding from the middle of his back until his hip.

Touching down, Ryou rolled on his back, gritting his teeth trying to ignore the pain, as he aimed.

"Flame Shot!" The flaming arrow detonated on the creature's torso before his eyes could register what had he hit, leaving only a flaming pair of pale humanoid legs, hardly attached.

The sound of metal clashing with something had him turned his head slightly, and he found his partner blocking a claw with her rapier, her arms shaking from the effort of keeping the creature at bay.

A moment later, a small barrage of arrows, punctured holes in its side, one severing a pale clawed arm. The arm dropping to the ground, a strange appendage, that separated at the elbow, forming another new arm.

The action gave Rishia time to find her balance. The other clawed arm swung, but the green-haired girl weaved under it, her rapier coming forward, stabbing the larger humanoid creature in the chest. Blood squirted from the new puncture wound, and the girl pushed the rapier deeper with both hands, as the monster screeched. A whooshing sound echoed, and a new hole appeared in the monster's faceless visage courtesy of Ryou.

Rishia took a look a the Bow Hero, her eyes widening slightly. Grabbing the handle of her weapon with both hands, she lowered into a stance, "As source of thy power, I order thy. Decipher the laws of Nature, and cut the air in front of me!".

Ryou knowing what followed lowered himself parallel to the ground.

"Faust Wind Cutter!" The tip of the rapier shined brilliantly, as she swung it in an arc in front of her, a translucent scythe of wind following after, bisecting another humanoid monster, as cutting deeply into a second.

Coming to his feet, Ryou took in the front of the tunnel were Rishia had shot her spell. Clenching his teeth, he quickly aimed, "Rapid Flame Shot!"

Three flaming arrows flew towards the three imminent threats, detonating in domes of fire that filled most of the tunnel in front of him.

"Fuee! Ryou stop! You'll bring the entire tunnel down!" Rishia shouted in panic, as a couple of white boulders fell from the ceiling, courtesy with his skill.

_Shit, she's right__… But where the hell are these silent hill rejects coming from? _Ryou demanded mentally looking towards the front as the fire dissipated, leaving only charred remains.

A crashing sound, had him look backward, and he saw one of the faceless creatures slamming into the ceiling. The Impact so great that it burst open, blood raining down on the ground and on Quartz who still had her fist extended upwards.

Turning towards him the small girl sent him a wave, that would have been reassuring if she wasn't coated in blood. An instant later a shadow appeared behind the girl, a claw coming for her head, yet even before he could begin to issue a warning, her tail lashed out, without even looking, she slammed it into the creatures mid-section, and the monster blurred, disappearing into the darkness, followed by a crashing sound echoing in the distance.

With no more present threats, Ryou surveyed his surroundings, from side to side," Did one of you see where they came from?"

"Fuee! No… One moment they weren't there, the other they just appeared out of nowhere!" Rishia exclaimed, mimicking Ryou, eyes searching for signs of more monsters.

"Onii-shama, there's more…Many, many more…" Quartz added, sniffing the air with a slight frown. Both her small fists and her hair raked with dark red.

Do they come from the ground, or are they just invisible? Ryou wondered, backing away until he was near Rishia. Still locking every inch of the tunnel from clues, the Bow Hero put his brain into overdrive trying to understand where the monsters had come from.

_According to Quartz, there's more, we just can see them__… _The moment he thought about it, Ryou was hit with another thought. Crouching he placed his hand on top of one of the monsters, willing his bow to absorb it.

**[Marble Horror Mimick Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - 6+Attack, Hiding Bonus(Small)- Special Effect - Monster Lure, Monster Attraction Range Bonus(Medium)]**

"Marble Mimick…", Ryou muttered, his eyes widening, as he lowered his gaze to the ground. Kicking one of the small round rocks lightly, he watched it rolling on the ground before it came to a stop. A moment later the rock shook a little by itself, before coming to stop. Head moving slowly, eyes on the ground, the Bow Hero took in the countless amount of round stones just in his immediate area. Bringing his bow he pointed it further down the tunnel, eyes on the ground, repeating the action in the opposite direction, another shiver crossing his body.

_Shit__… _"Their hiding as rocks, their mimic type monsters!" Ryou warned, raising his bow, and backing away towards a wall.

"Ryou, if what Quartz's saying is true, we have to leave!" Rishia pleaded, also backing away towards the wall.

His back hitting the marble wall, Ryou gave his surrounding a quick look, before taking a side glance to the dragon girl, "Quartz get over here slowly. Rishia blow any rocks near us with your Wind Blow spell!"

Quartz slowly made her way, carefully sidestepping the suspicious rocks. The moment she reached them, Rishia how had been chanting her spell, released it in a cone in front of them aim at the ground. The wind spell blowing every rock near them, along with kicking up a dust cloud.

_There's no way every single rock is one of them because if that's the case there are hundreds, if not a thousand of them__…_ Ryou rationalized, Bow lock on the dust cloud as it slowly dispersed.

"Okay, I'm going to try something, Quartz get ready to sneeze," Ryou ordered.

The small girl inhaled, her cheeks puffing, as Rishia griped her rapier tighter.

_Here goes nothing__…_

"Change Bow! Marble Horror Mimic Bow!" With the com and, a pure white bow materialized in the bows heroes grip, the arc of the bow finishing in two appendages eery reminiscent of the monster's arms.

A moment passed, and Ryou felt his hopes rising, only to be completely dashed, the next second.

"Hell no! Teleport: Northern Village!" The scream came out of his mouth, along with a tilt of his head, as a claw impaled itself right next to it, and in the next moment, his vision was filled with blue.

* * *

As the blue light disappeared, and the gates of Northern Village came on again into sight, the Bow Hero took a deep breath, to calm himself. Feeling some weight on his shoulder, he took a look, his face morphing into one of disgust, as he took note of the extra appendage still clapped in it. Grabbing the severed arm, he almost threw it into the distance before resigning himself, and let it drop to the ground.

The Bow Hero let himself drop on the grass, taking note of his party members. Rishia had already taken a seat and looked no worse to wear if a little out of breath. Quartz, he had to hold a small snort at the sight. The small Dragon Girl also looked fine, not counting having a severe claw between her teeth, and was shaking it rapidly, growling almost like a rabid dog.

"Well, that ended in failure," Ryou commented airily.

"T-That was scary…"She commented. Her eyes were still wide. Taking a breath she shook her head. "...It c-couldn't be helped though, there were too many."

_I could have dealt with them if I was alone__…_ The traitorous thought crossed the Bow Hero's mind. The _Marble Mimicks_ move rather slowly and didn't appear to capable of jumping, so it would have been easy for him to jump onto the ceiling with his gripping skill, and take them out one by one if needed.

Almost immediately had the thought crossed his mind, Ryou shook his head almost furiously. It wasn't that his party members were slowing down, quite the contrary, it was fate once again locking him in a situation that he had been at a great disadvantage.

"Well, at least we know what we are dealing with… Now we just need to figure out how to deal with a thousand enemies without the usage of unreasonable amounts of explosives…" He rationalized out loud, having his hand lazily in the air.

"Fuee! We are going back?!" Rishia exclaimed in horror.

At the sound of her voice, Ryou lifted himself into a seated position, to look at the green-haired girl, before scoffing light, "Well obviously. I'm not leaving without getting that mithril, isn't that the entire point why we went there…"

"Onee-shama is scared," Quartz interjected, waving the severed claw in the air.

Turning to look at the small girl, Rishia eyes fell on the appendage for a few moments, "Fueee! Of course I'm scared! There's no reason to take that risk when it isn't even worth it!" She continued her voice a pitch higher.

Ryou closed his eyes for a brief moment, the Shadow Maid words still very much present in the corner of his mind.

_"Because you were hesitating!"_

_"You are the wisest, and the most prudent of the Four, there's no doubt about it, but you were poking the ground in front of you with a stick before stepping on it!"_

_"I saw you! I'm almost always following you! You were even afraid of stepping out of Castle Town! You have the potential to be an amazing ally and the strongest among the four of you for sure, but there's a fine line between being cautious and being a coward, and guess to what side you were leaning towards?! How can we trust a hero to save us, if he's even afraid of his own shadow!"_

Taking a deep breath, he opened his eyes again, "Rish… I understand where you are coming from, I really do but…" Another deep breath, "...but this is something I have to do. We have to do."

A frown made itself apparent in her face, as she questioned, "Why?"

Ryou took a moment, before replying, "Because among the four legendary heroes… I'm the biggest coward of them all." The Bow Hero admitted, releasing a chuckle a moment later, one hand rubbing his face.

"It doesn't matter if I try to cover it up with nice words like I'm being prudent, or I'm being logical, in the end that's the harsh truth. It also doesn't matter if the other two somewhere in their mind think they there immortal, or if Naofumi is just touched in the head… No, perhaps because he is the Tate-no Yuusha, he figured it's a given that he is going to get hurt… Maybe that's part of the reason why I was chosen to be the Yumi-no Yuusha. To have the ability to just stay out of harm's reach…"

Rising off the ground, Ryou dust himself. Taking the frown on his partner's face, that appeared to have gotten more severe, he continued, "Rish I already told you the story about what happened in my first week here."

Rishia nodded slightly, "T-The wolves…"

"Yeah, with the wolves… The same thing happened with Gentlewood, and with the Chimera at the wave… Unless I'm not given a choice, my first instinct is always the same." Looking upwards towards the sky, his lips turned down, "That's who I am, but in there lies the problem… This place… The fact that I'm the Yumi-no Yuusha, and this world will not allow me to be me, that's why I have to change… That's why even if it's dangerous we have to do this. Perhaps you're right and its a meaningless risk, and it might not be worth it, but it's still something we have to do."

Slowly the Bow Hero turned towards Northern Village gates.

"Think of it this way. At least we know what we are dealing with now, so let's pull resources, and figure out how to deal with this situation." The Bow Hero finished. Making his way into the village, he came to a stop by the sound of Rishia's voice.

"A-And if we can't?" She took a breath, eyes rising to look at the Bow Hero's back. "Find a way to deal with it, I mean."

"Then…" Ryou's eyes narrowed, as he clenched his fist. "...I'll just brute force my way through them if that's what it takes..."

* * *

_Next Chapter: Leaving No Stone Unturned..._


	25. Leaving no Stone Unturned

**A/N - **Back again with a new chapter and with a few things to cover. First and foremost, I did promise a list of Bows this chapter, and it will come this Sunday. The thing is, it has been a tiring week, and I just wanted to get the chapter out on schedule, I will add the list Sunday since it's my only day off this week, but I will be able to sit down and get everything straight.

Second thing, I did mention that this arc will be larger than the previous ones, but it can be separated into three mini-arcs, with the first taking place in Northern village, and this chapter arguably marks the halfway point of this particular mini-arc.

Third thing is, I don't address guest reviews on A/N, that being said, if you really want to talk or discuss ideas, then the only option is really creating an account, and reviewing from there, or just sending me a PM. I try to answer all the reviews, and PMs, though sometimes it might take a day or so, and once again I'm open to ideas/ criticism, or even answering some doubts or confusion, as long as it's not direct spoilers.

Also, I know I have said this a couple of times, but I will say once more, especially since it will become a more prominent thing going forward, and to avoid some confusion. This story is categorized as an Alternate Universe, but that isn't just based on Ryou's existence and the butterflies that come from it. Some events are inherently different from canon, and cannot be attributed to Ryou's presence, like the three months to the wave instead of the one, and a half. This was also not done on a whim, it as a reason why it is so.

Finally, let's get on with the show… Where Ryou, and party finally try different avenues, Rishia as doubts, and Quartz as her first encounter with her species nemesis.

**Edit - 12/01/2020 - Added the Bow List**

* * *

**Chapter 25. Braving into a New World: Leaving no Stone Unturned**

"Fuuee… Ryou somehow this feels like cheating…" Rishia said, her tone almost disappointed.

Now three hours after the party had returned from their failure in the Mithril Mines, Ryou had come up with a couple of ideas that needed testing. One of those ideas led him to have Rishia bring out her college days alchemist set out of the storage.

Shaking a beaker like glass container, Ryou eyed the bluish solution, before replying, "Put a sock in it, Rish. You know that I can only translate simple stuff, so it would take me all week just to get the process of making Magic-Recovery Potions down."

The girl bit her lip, returning her gaze to the book, "Still it doesn't feel right…" she murmured.

Ryou pored the liquid into three smaller flasks, covering them with the lid."Damn honor students and their ethics," He whispered in annoyance.

"What?" She questioned.

"Nothing. For now, I'm taking a short cut until I can read, and it's not like we have all the time in the world to do this the right and proper way." Ryou explained.

Grabbing the two flasks from two different groups he eyed them both. One had blue clear liquid, the other very much the same besides the small leaves that could be seen floating within.

**[Magic-Recovery Potion]**

"You said that if we filter them, and then add the leaves it would boost the potency right?" Ryou asked.

The girl clapped her hands and nodded, "Yes, it says so in the book."

Taking another look at the other potion, Ryou focused on it.

**[Magic-Recovery Potion]**

_Its the same thing, yet I can appraise the quality of the herbs, and I know that Naofumi could somehow see the difference in quality in different things, that's why he knew he was getting scammed by the church of the three heroes__… Its the same with monsters levels, I kind of remember that he could also see their levels, but for some reason I can't… I'm missing something here,_ Ryou realized annoyed.

"Onii-shama I'm back." Quartz greeted taking a seat on a chair at the table.

"So, how did it go?" Ryou asked, expectantly.

"Quartz sneezed these many times," she replied opening both hands, eight fingers raised. " Then everything was spinning, so she stopped."

Ryou let out a small laugh, "Quartz your suppose to breathe, between shots or you'll pass out from lack of air." He replied.

Opening his party menu he took in his smallest member MP bar, which was down to a little more than halfway.

_She can arguably fire fifteen breaths at full MP if I take into consideration passive MP regeneration. That's more than I was expecting__…_ Ryou considered.

Grabbing a flask, he handled it to Quartz, "Here drink this." Ryou said.

The small girl eyed the potion, shaking it slightly, before gulping it down, her MP Bar rising back to full.

"Fuee, you want to set them on fire?" Rishia questioned, finally understanding the need for the potions.

Ryou inclined his head slightly, "It's a possibility, as long as it doesn't outright explode, and we avoid getting surrounded we're good. But before that, I want to visit Gentlewood's Blacksmith, might as well look for an apothecary while we are at it." Ryou proposed, shoving another vial into his inventory.

"There is one if I remember correctly..." Rishia added, closing the book.

"Good. I want to figure out a way to assess the quality of my potions. I know for a fact Naofumi can do it, so it's an ability from the legendary weapons, but maybe there are other ways." Ryou explained, finally finished with his task.

Going around the table he patted Quartz on the head and motioned her to follow him with Rishia catching up a second later.

"You could have asked Naofumi-sama…"

Ryou shrugged, opening the main door, and letting Quartz pass. "Never came up, so I forgot about it."

Rishia fell in silence after that, content in just following the Bow Hero and the small dragon girl who had a light spring in her steps, as she crossed the dirt roads of Northern Village.

When they reach the gates a thought crossed her mind, one she vocalized, "Ryou… Are we walking all the way to Gentlewood?" She asked. The Bow Hero could probably run all the way there, but she couldn't.

"Of course not," Ryou replied amused.

That only served to add to the girl's confusion, "Then how?"

Ryou's eyes settle on the small dragon girl, a small smile on his face.

Quartz tilted her head to the side, her eyes meeting his. "Hmm?"

* * *

"Fuueeeeeee!" Rishia screamed in panic.

"Now this is traveling in style! Who the hell needs overweight Chocobos when you have a dragon!" Ryou announced in glee.

"Please Quartz-chan slow down!" The green varied begged from her place behind Ryou, her grip tightening around his waist.

Ryou glanced behind him, enjoying the dust cloud Quartz was leaving behind, as she dashed forward, the trees zooming by.

"Ohh come on Rish, live a little will you," Ryou said with a smile, turning to the front and patting the dragon on the back.

Feeling the go-ahead, Quartz appeared to shift gears, lowering her head and folding her wings.

"Fuueeee! I'm more worried about living too little!" Rishia screamed back, before she blinked, raising her hand, one finger pointing to the front. "Quartz-chan look out!"

The dragon in question released a breath like a scoff before she lashed with her hind legs. A moment later she was sailing through the air, ignoring the two screams on top, one of fear, another of excitement.

Touching down, the dragon turned her head around to look at the carriage behind her. However, it was the creatures pulling the vehicle that made her come to a stop, her yellow slitted eyes narrowing.

"Kweh!" Almost in a choir, the filorials started squeaking, pulling on their reins, their feathers rufling in a sign that screamed aggression.

Quartz flapped her wings in agitation, rearing her head back. A roar came the next instant, and the Bow Hero had a feeling that Quartz had infused it with magic, his eyes widening when both filorials toppled over, and the poor traveler, was pushed inside the carriage by an unseen force.

_"Stupid birds__…"_

Quartz's voice echoed inside the Bow Hero's mind, his fist flying to cover his mouth, head lowering to hide the silent laugh that threatened to escape.

"Quartz-chan!" Rishia rebuked, jumping out of the dragons back.

Crouching down near the Filorials she placed a shaky hand on top of one, releasing a sigh a moment later, "They are just passed out from shock…" She then turned her head towards the dragon, eyes filled with disapproval. "... Quartz-chan why did you do this?"

_"They were annoying,"_ The dragon answered her voice mostly bland.

Rishia mouth dropped slightly, before she shook her head and went to check on the traveler who was still sprawled on the floor of the carriage.

"Quartz we have to go apologize to that man," Ryou whispered to the dragon, still trying to suppress the smile on his face.

_"Why? Quartz doesn't feel sorry, and neither does Onii-shama__…" _

Ryou's hand once again went to cover his mouth, even when his other chopped the dragon lightly on the head, "Quite you! Don't say anything or your sister will be nagging us for the rest of the trip." He admonished in a hushed tone.

_On one side I'm dreading the moment she meets with Filo... On the other I'm curious to witness the chaos that will be unleashed upon this world__…_Ryou admitted, his eyes moving from the downed filorials that were breathing heavily to Quartz who was still looking at them with half lid eyes.

* * *

After they had thoroughly apologized to the traveling merchant, although only one particular member in the party truly meant it. The trio made their way to Gentlewood village, making their first stop at the apothecary, a run down shop that had seen better days with withered wood shelves that almost threatened to collapse under the weight of their merchandise.

Now Ryou watched as the owner, inspected every potion the Bow Hero had produced and separated them into groups.

"This is quite the varied assortment you have brought me, Yuusha-sama." The man commented, inspecting a bottle of Soul-Healing Water with a serious expression. Releasing a sigh, he placed it down near three others.

Arms crossed over the counter, the Bow Hero's eyes moved from the bottles to the man's face. "I have been meaning to dip my hand into potion brewing, not just healing ones." Eyes once again moving down to the different groups, Ryou straightened himself, rolling a shoulder. "I take it you have been separating them in order of quality, right?"

The man nodded absently, picking another bottle and bringing it to eye level for closer inspection. "Indeed... Like I said, a very varied assortment you brought me… Some of them are definitely worth a good coin."

Ryou hummed in thought. He had no doubt they were worth something, but he also had to take into consideration that his, and the man's notion of value were different.

"Can I ask, how is it that you can differentiate from them… In quality I mean?" Ryou asked in an offhand manner.

The apothecary, lowered the bottle blinking at the Bow Hero a couple of times, "You just develop an eye for it. It would be pretty bad if I couldn't tell the quality of a potion. What merchant doesn't know the value of the merchandise he is supposed to be selling?"

The owner's tone had come out slightly condescending, but Ryou ignored it.

_Quality..? Value..?_ Ryou wondered, staring blankly at the wall behind the man. Then with a side look, he opened his inventory. In an almost mechanical fashion, the Hero delved into it, bringing out a single copper coin, before placing it gently against the yellow jewel on his wrist. There was a familiar soft yellow glow.

_Pling__…_

**[Copper Coin Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - + 1 to Appraisal Skill - Special Effect - + 1 to Appraisal Skill]**

_I can__'t help but to find a trace of irony, in the fact that just a few hours ago I was thinking about how you should try everything… Well better late than never…_ Ryou released an almost exasperated sigh. This would be another thing he needed to work on, the small stuff, it had always been the small stuff that tripped him.

Reaching for a random Healing Potion, the Bow Hero brought it up close to his face, opening the Status Window.

**[Generic Healing Potion - Quality - Good]**

Reaching with another hand, Ryou proceeded to grab a brownish solution, before also inspecting it.

**[Soul-Healing Water - Quality - Medium]**

_Well, that neatly solved my problem, worth the trip at least__…_ Ryou concluded, placing the potions back on the counter, before repeating the latest process with a silver coin.

**[Silver Coin Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - + 2 to Appraisal Skill]**

He decided to stop there. A gold coin would be a pretty big hit on their current finances, especially since the resulting bow would probably follow the same theme.

Grasping another potion from a random group, Ryou shook it lightly, watching the liquid swirl inside, "What quality would you say this one is?"

The apothecary didn't even raise his head, too busy asserting the quality of another concoction, as he replied, "That would be a normal quality Magic-Recovery potion…" He replied in a tired tone.

Ryou brought the flask closer to analyze it.

**[Magic-Recovery Potion - Quality - Medium]**

_It checks. Taking into consideration how the village was a few weeks ago one can never take things like this at face value__…_ Ryou considered, taking a look behind him.

Rishia appeared to be reading some dusty old tome in the corner, her eyebrows furrowed, has she tried to decipher the content. Eyes moving to the next section, he found their smallest member, eyeing what seemed to be remnants of monsters preserved in flasks, her face one of curiosity.

_Probably wondering if she can eat them__… _Ryou snorted at the thought. The sound of glass hitting the counter had the bow hero turning around, as the older man finished his assessment.

"For someone who is just beginning, this is far above what I would expect. A lot of them are of good quality…" The owner trailed off, eyes moving to the ceiling, as he scratched his chin, "...I would say, you are already ready to delve further if you wish."

"What would the next step be?" Ryou questioned. He had the three primary if arguably most useful potions down, so the only thing he could think off would be anti-poisons, or weed killers like Naofumi.

"Well, antidotes for mild poisons would be the next step, along with other more conditional if less used formulas. However…" The man trailed off, his eyes narrowing slightly.

"What?" Ryou questioned confused.

Releasing another breath, the man eyed him for a moment. "Word has it, that the Yumi-no Yuusha-sama as acquired himself a dragon, or so our new lord says."

Ryou, turned to look at the side, watching as Quartz's head perked up, before he returned to look at the older man.

_Almond knows no discretion it appears,_"I have… Why?"

The apothecary shifted under the Bow Hero's neutral stare, before nodding to himself, "I never touched such a thing, but every apothecary worth it's salt knows that dragon fluids are quite amazing in the production of potions, to varied effects, so maybe…"

Ryou's face contorted up in slight disgust. _Dragon Fluids..?_ His gaze moved down to look at Quartz that had made her way next to him. "Quartz do you know anything about this? Like if your spit as healing properties or something."

The small girl shook her head slightly her white long hair waving with the movement," Quartz doesn't know..."

She was just born a few days ago… Ryou concluded, his thoughts broken by an awkward cough.

"Errr… Yuusha-sama?" The apothecary questioned confused, eyes moving from Quartz to him, and then back to the small girl.

Right… "This is Quartz. She's the dragon Lord Almond mentioned…" Ryou explained patting the girl on the head.

The man blinked slowly, "...Yuusha-sama, no matter how you put it, I can only see a little gi…" The man trailed off, eyes widening, as Quartz pointed to the side, her tail waving lightly near the tip of her finger.

"Quartz is Quartz, and Quartz is a Dragon?" The small girl half announced, half questioned.

_Why does she keep stating it like a question?_ Shaking his head the Bow Hero continued, "Well it's like she said. It would be kind of awkward to walk around town with a nine-meter-long reptile trailing behind right?"

The man blinked a couple more times, before regaining his composure with another awkward cough, " Yes well, as I was saying, dragon fluids are very good ingredients in potion brewing and are even used in alchemy, so maybe you could move in that particular direction."

"Dragons are very sought after by adventurers, since the materials are very valuable, even in making weapons or armor…" Rishia added joining the conversation from the side.

_Hi, I__'m Ren, the Sword Hero, and I will be slaying your dragon as you sit back and sip some tea for the remainder of the afternoon, never mind the fact that, I will leave the body behind, something that will contaminate the entirety of the surrounding areas, but have no fear, my fellow Hero will be here in a few weeks to clean up after me, also… Naofumi you bastard how dare you steal my reward!_ An ugly snort escaped Ryou's mouth as he remembered those particular events.

Reaching with his hand, he grabbed a green-tinted potion.

**[Generic Healing Potion - Quality - Good]**

Prying the bottle open he lowered it to the small girl's level, who took a couple of sniffs at it

"Quartz, spit in here please," Ryou ordered.

"Yuusha-sama! You know that is not the correct proce..!"

_Pthew__…_

Raising the bottle, Ryou closed it back before shaking it vigorously for a few seconds. After he stopped, he brought it up to closer inspection. The liquid inside remained green but now seemed to emit a soft pale glow.

**[Dragon Blessed Healing Potion - Quality - Medium]**

_It probably went down in quality because I made it in such a half-assed manner__…_ Ryou concluded, handling the potion to the apothecary, who's eyes widened in surprise.

"This..! Even if the quality lowered, this is a superb healing potion, among the strongest I have seen!" The man exclaimed in awe.

Ryou doubled over the counter moving closer to the man," Superb you say? How much do you think I can sell it for?"

"This one, probably worth five to ten silver, but if you used the correct procedure and increased the quality, you could probably sell it to upwards of thirty silver." The man explained, admiring the glowing flask.

"Thirty silver you say…" Ryou contemplated, rising to full height, as a small grin appeared in his face. Even if he were to low-ball it, he would still be able to make quite a good amount of profit with little to no investment besides some time, and patience. Not only that but he could keep stock of potions that possessed amazing quality.

Turning to the small girl he patted her on the head once more, "Good job Quartz."

"Quartz doesn't understand, but she was praised… Yay." Quartz cheered, and even if it came out rather monotonous, Ryou knew she meant it.

Holding out his hand, the owner placed the potion back in Ryou's grasp. A moment later the Bow Hero brought the potion to his jewel.

**[Dragon Healing Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - Health Bonus(Small) - Health Recovery Bonus(Small), Dragon Healing Bonus(Small) - Dragon Healing Items Crafting Recipes Unlocked - Special Effect - Dragon Healing Items Efficiency Bonus(Small), Dragon Healing Items Range Effect(Small)]**

_The stats aren__'t particularly amazing, but that's a lot of bonuses…_ Ryou admitted mentally.

The Bow Hero then proceeded to repeat the process, with the other potions, and the action resulted in two similar themed bows, along with a third one called Dragon Blessed Bow, that while unlocked, had a higher-level requirement to use then he currently possessed.

_Now to increased our stock__…_ Grabbing most of the high-quality potions Ryou proceed to pry them open one, by one, lowering them so Quartz could spit on them. It wasn't until the third one, that his partner's voice reached him.

"Fueee! I'm not d-drinking those potions!" Rishia exclaimed, backing away until her back hit a shelf.

"Ohh yes you are," Ryou stated seriously, shaking the concoctions, as they gained a soft glow.

"Fueee! No! That's like an i-i-indirect kiss!"

Ryou's face twitched, and very slowly he returned the potions to their place on the counter, as he turned to face Rishia, with an expression that seemed like a mixture of confusion, disbelief, and exasperation. "That's… what you're worried about..?"

The green-haired girl shrunk, face lowering, but Ryou still caught the small blush on her cheeks, before it was hidden by her hair, as she nodded.

Blinking a couple of times, Ryou asked slowly, "Rishia… How old are you again?"

If anything the girl looked even smaller, her hands clapping in front of her. "S-S-Seventeen?" She answered hesitantly.

Ryou blinked a couple more times." Okay then…" Then he returned to shaking the potions, with a blank look on his face.

_Indirect kissing? Not the fact that its spit, nor the fact that it comes from technically a week and a few days old Dragon slash little girl, but Indirect kissing?_ Ryou knew that such notions had mostly died a long time ago in his old world, and the few mentions you would find of such a thing would be in anime, so he never considered the fact that his partner no matter how shy, would be bothered by it.

_She as a problem with indirect kissing, but doesn__'t have one when her imagination pictures what I do, or don't do with a whore? Riiiiiight…_

Finally done with the half-baked alchemy process, Ryou grabbed three _Dragon Blessed Magic-Recovery Potions_ and threw them had Rishia. The girl clumsily grabbing them out of the air.

"Fueee! No! I refuse!" She stretched her arms, holding the potions at arm's length as she feverish shook her head.

Ryou's face showed exactly how unimpressed he was with the situation, "Rishia your going to drink those potions when you need to or so help me, I'll make you…" He let the threat hang in the air.

"Fueee…" Her expression still looked rebellious, even as she brought the potions closer to her.

"…and about that indirect kiss stuff, well… You joined a Yuusha's party, of your own volition I might add sooo…" Ryou straightened his shoulders, his face looking into the distance beyond the display window, "...sacrifices have to be made for the world's sake, and this is yours, live with it."

Rishia looked stunned as the realization hit her, and Ryou continued to look out the window, trying to suppress the smile that threatened to come out, even when light laughter reached him, courtesy of the owner who found the entire situation hilarious.

Quartz tilted her head, confused, looking from one person to the next, finally resting on Rishia.

"Onee-shama… What's an indirect kiss?"

* * *

"You could have mention that you were interested in blacksmith… I have a few books about it…" Rishia said from her place behind him, as the trio made their way back to Northern Village at a more mild pace.

_I wonder if there is a topic she doesn't have books about__… _Ryou wondered, clicking his tongue. "You seemed to be proposedly forgetting about the fact that I still can't read." He replied annoyed.

"All the more reason to learn quickly!" Rishia interjected excitedly.

"You really are a nerd aren't you Rish?"

"I-I'm a what?" The girl asked.

Holding in a sigh, Ryou shook his head as he recalled his the visit to the blacksmith.

The first thing Ryou had done, had been something he should have done in Castle Town, and that had been copying every bow in stock, even when Rishia complained that it felt like they were stealing. As fate would have it, Ryou's intervention in dealing with the later corrupt noble had prevented the shop from closing, being borderline bankrupt at the time due to not having any costumers, Gentlewood applying insane taxes to donate towards the church of the three heroes being the main cause. As a thank you token the owner had allowed Ryou to copy every bow he had in stock with a smile.

Unfortunately, the selection had been less than stellar as expected from a village out in the middle of nowhere. Pretty much every bow he had unlocked had been nothing but a stat booster, with the small bonus here and there, though some of them gave a small increase in damage against some fauna or another, something that while mildly surprising should have been expected since most of the bows he had copied were for hunting purposes. Among them however was one that caught his attention and brought a familiar skill to the table, that he would try out the moment they returned to the village.

Besides that, he had also questioned the blacksmith in his art. Sure they could always rely on Erhard for weapons and armor, but Ryou had a feeling that thanks to his legendary weapon he could master blacksmithing to an even higher level.

_Not only that, but if I work with Naofumi in the future he should have accessory crafting down to an art form, so this will compliment it... Nothing wrong with covering all our bases__… _

He had also liked to play games where one could go down into the depths of the earth to gather materials and ores to make better equipment, something that also applied to his new reality, far more then he realized if the blacksmith and Rishia's words were to be taken into account.

According to the Blacksmith, one staple of this world were magic metals - metals that due to having been naturally infused with magic, were far more resistant than their normal counterparts, and were able to not only hold magic better but could be enhanced to an even higher degree. _Mithril_ was one such metal, stronger then steal and could hold a lot more enhancements than other more common magic metals. Above _Mithril_, stood _Adamantium_, another mythical metal that Ryou recognized. There were also others, mentioned in old tomes, and legends, though their existence was doubtful to some.

The way the man had explained it, was simple. The deeper one went, the denser ambient magic was, therefore the more it would engrave itself into the surrounding minerals. That also went along with a theory that Rishia had heard about in her college days, called_ Energy Convergence Theory_. Scholars around the world of Melromarc had a consensus that while magic could be used to influence gravity, it still obeyed it in some ways, as did other unseen energies. As such, the deeper you went, the more condensed those energies were, and the materials you would find would be of higher quality. On the other hand, those very same energies also tended to mutate, and empower any monster in those depths, sometimes to such a degree that even the most intrepid of adventurers would not dare to explore them.

_Who would have thought there would be a scientific reason behind why monsters on deeper levels of a dungeon were always higher level, and more dangerous__… _Ryou wondered. If such cave systems were unexplored, then they would probably make for amazing grinding spots if incredibly dangerous.

It also explained why the _Marble Mimicks_ had been able to take more punishment than anything on the surface. While Ryou had been able to easily one-shot the monstrous creatures with skills, he still remembered that one of his normal shots had hit the monster in the torso, and it still remained standing, the same with Rishia's stab. While such a difference might not be very noticeable, taking into consideration that since he had began to work on the other strengthening methods he had been able to obliterate everything he had come across on the surface with ease, it probably served as a good indicator that the monsters in the Northern Cavern were far stronger, even just a couple of hundred meters under the surface.

_Back home there were cave systems that extended ten times that depth and those were the explored ones__… While I have my hands full with everything going on, going cave delving in other places might be a good thing to consider somewhere down the line…_ Filing those thoughts for later, Ryou's mind changed to another line of thinking.

_Specialized Gear..._

While he wanted the ability to be able to make specialized gear for his party, it hadn't been until Rishia had commented about dragon materials that a particular question appeared in his mind.

_Why had Ren gone there in the first place?_

While the answer could have simply been a mission from the adventurers guild, Ryou remembered Naofumi mentioning Ren and his minions had harvested materials from the dragon.

That led to another question. Why did the Sword Hero needed materials in the first place? Not only that but from what information he had been able to acquire, the Sword Hero had a habit of deploying his party members to certain zones to farm even more materials.

It couldn't have been to sell, he also doubted it was to absorb them in order to unlock new weapons and somehow Ryou didn't think the Sword Hero had been using them to produce equipment for his entire guild, or at least not entirely.

After some thought, he had concluded that the Sword Hero was more than likely using the materials to create Weapons… Swords for himself to be exact.

_And since it was him that gave away the information about the automatic crafting system, then it's likely he is using it__…_ There was another line between reality, and games there. More then likely the Sword Hero had not unlocked the recipes to create such weapons, but on the other hand, there was no line of coding that stopped him from just placing the materials for a weapon from the game he played, into the crafting menu and create it.

_Maybe because he believes it, even if something was stopping him from creating said weapon without the recipe, he might be able to bypass it by the belief that it will work regardless__…_

Once again Ryou realized how linear the two heroes thought. Initially, he had the notion that the heroes had disregard Naofumi's way of doing things entirely, but that wasn't the case. Motoyasu and Ren did use it, but they were only scratching the surface of what could be done, focusing only on absorbing the very best materials. The same went for the copy system, they had been only focusing on copying the best weapons, ignoring every other more mundane one.

_Well that being said, it's not like I am using them to their full potential either..._

"The same applies to this third method of acquiring weapons for sure…" Ryou mumbled in an inaudible tone, the corner of his mouth twitching.

It would be easy to just throw the materials into the crafting system based on recipes from their memories, but that was a mostly static system that hardly allowed for variation. While if one were to take those materials, and try crafting something by hand, there would be a lot of possible outcomes, and even if nine out of ten weapons ended up being sub-par variations of the one he wanted to create, they would still have equipment bonuses worth mastering.

"This world gives you a lot of ways to strengthen yourself, but to truly become strong you have to delve into it and try everything that you can…" Ryou wondered out loud.

"That way you will be able to figure the one that fits you the best…" Rishia continued from the back.

Ryou chuckled lightly, "Not exactly what I was talking about Rish, but your not completely wrong either… One should try everything he can, but without forgetting about his strengths."

"I wonder if I should also try other things?" She pondered looking upwards.

"I think your calling is magic though. Aren't you working on that mysterious spell too?" Ryou asked with a raised eyebrow.

The girl looked at him with a wishful expression, and nodded slightly, "I am, it's just…" She paused."...I also thought magic was the way to go, but maybe that is not so…"

Ryou hummed looking towards the dirt road, "What brought this sudden bout of doubt so suddenly?"

"It wasn't sudden… I am always thinking about it, and watching you try so many different things got me thinking that maybe there's something that I might be even better at then magic…"

"Well if you want to try something, your free to do so of course, just don't waste away your potential on something that might set you back". Ryou advised.

_Yes Itsuki you ass, I'm looking at you__…_

" I won't!" She promised from the back.

"That being said, I did saw that stunt you pulled at the mine, where you used your rapier as a focus for your magic, so there's that." Ryou shot her a grin.

"It doesn't work with every magic, but I can do it with some of them, it makes them more concentrated… I think…"

"Still it's good that you're branching out."Ryou paused, his eye watching the orange hues that were slowly taking over the sky."Something that might be better suited for you then magic huh?" Ryou pondered out loud.

_You only see this kind of talent this girl possesses once every hundred years__…_

A small smile broke in Ryou's face as the memory hit him, "Well it's a long shot, but I might have an idea…"

"Fueee! Really! What is it?" She questioned excitedly, pressing herself against his back.

"Calm down Rish… It's just an idea, besides it's something it will probably take a while to learn, and it's not like your moving in a bad direction so it can take a back seat for now…"

"I still want to know!" She replied with a hint of impatience.

"Too bad I don't feel like sharing right now," Ryou explained with a small smile.

"Fuee! Your being mean!" Rishia accused.

"_Onii-shama is being mean to Onee-shama..." _Quartz voiced in their heads.

"When was it, that I ever said I was a nice person? It's your own fault for thinking otherwise…"

* * *

"Air Strike Arrow!" A shout herald the release of the skill. A green shining arrow, coated in a mantle of wind hit a tree, tearing it apart, and continued forward unpaused, disappearing into the forest followed by a loud booming sound, and a wind wave that threatened to rip the remaining trees off the ground.

The wave finally subsided, along with the sound of trunks falling unto the forest floor as Ryou surveyed the damage that his new skill had unleashed.

"It's official, I'm now part of the Air Strike Squad it seems…" Ryou murmured slightly annoyed.

Once more the Bow Hero felt he was being bullied by the spirits above. The Air Strike Shield had been a staple of Naofumi's arsenal, so Ryou had decided after the wave to absorb a piece of rope just like the Shield Hero had done in hopes to unlock a similar themed skill. The endeavor resulted in failure. He had indeed unlocked a rope themed bow, but it was just a stat booster, providing a measly plus two to agility, and no skills or special effects to speak of.

He couldn't help but feel a little angry, that he had to come all the way to Northern Village, and copy a Bow to unlock the skill.

**[Gryphon's Feathered Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - + 5 to attack, + 5 to agility, Air Strike Arrow Skill]**

_Not only that, but compared to Naofumi's version, this one seems a lot less versatile__… _

Flicking his wrist, Ryou willed the bow back in bangle form, and dusted his hands," Well that's, that… Since my new skill hardly adds anything new, guess our plan remains the same".

"You're going to have Quartz-chan flood the tunnel with fire then?" Rishia questioned with a tilt of her head.

Ryou nodded, eyes going for the small girl seated beside Rishia, "You heard that Quartz, you're on barbecue duty, so I expect you to roast those…" Ryou trailed off eyes still on the small girl.

_Versatile..? Thinking Linearly..?_

"Quartz, come over here," Ryou ordered with a motion of his hand.

The small girl hopped on her feet and made her way next to him, "Yes Onii-shama?"

"Just give me a second…" Once more the _Gryphon's Feathered Bow_ materialized itself in his grip.

Pointing completely upwards, Ryou lowered himself on one knee, "Air Strike Arrow." With the command Ryou's new skill came into existence, the arrow held back by his fingers.

Turning his head slightly Ryou addressed the girl, "Quartz I need you to listen to me seriously or this might end up very badly for me," Ryou paused letting his warning sink."I want you to gently, and I do mean gently release your fire breath into my arrow okay?"

The girl blinked twice curiously, then puff out a soft stream of flames aimed at the arrowhead. The flames circled the front of the arrow before melding with the entire projectile, releasing small streams that licked the Bow Hero's face, producing an almost uncomfortable amount of heat but not damaging him in any way.

**[Combination Skill Unlocked - Dragon Flame Strike Arrow]**

"Well cringy name aside, it works."Letting go of the arrow, the new flaming projectile flew into the sky leaving a trail of fire until it burst into flames far above the tree line.

Pulling once more, another _Air Strike Arrow_ materialized.

"Quartz do it again, but at full power now," Ryou ordered. Ignoring the worried exclamation from their third member, Quartz puffed her cheeks before releasing a raging torrent of fire.

Fire surrounded the Bow Hero, yet once again there was no damage besides the uncomfortable sensation of heat. The torrent swirled around, melting into the arrow that nearly quadrupled in length.

"Dragon Flame Strike Arrow!" Ryou shouted. The over-sized arrow flew into the sky like a firework, before detonating similarly to his flame shot, only creating a far bigger sphere of fire that illuminated the entire area.

_Wonder why all my fire-based skills do that sphere of condensed flames thing instead of straight-up exploding__…_

Small embers rained down on the party as Ryou smiled at the prospect of destruction that they could now unleashed."Well, that's another weapon to our arsenal."

"It was amazing, but…" Rishia commented coming to a stop near him, eyes upwards watching the last of the embers falling.

"Yup, this one would collapse the tunnel one hundred percent guaranteed…" Ryou allowed.

"What if you don't add fire to it, but something else?" Rishia proposed.

"Like what?" Ryou asked.

Biting her lip lightly, Rishia's eyes moved to the ground for a couple of seconds, before she raised her head, "Can...Can I try something?"

"Sure knock yourself out," Ryou replied with a shrug. A moment later his new skill came for the fourth time into existence.

Turning his head slightly to the side he watched his partner expectantly.

Rishia eyed him worriedly, "Please don't move." She paused taking a deep breath and pointed her rapier at the arrowhead, eyes closing in concentration, "As source of thy power I order thy. Decipher the laws of Nature, and cut the air in front of me. Faust Wind Cutter!"

From the tip of Rishia's rapier, a thin white stream like beam shot forward, hitting the arrowhead, making the projectile shine brighter, and a soft humming sound began to emanate from it, as the wind around the Bow Hero picked up.

**[Combination Skill Unlocked - Gale Cutting Strike Arrow]**

"Urgh, once more, not even going to comment on the name…" Ryou murmured, wondering why his legendary weapon had the naming sense of a twelve-year-old.

Lining his bow with the forest in front of him, Ryou released the new projectile, almost losing his footing courtesy of the gust of wind the action released. The arrow flew forward engulfed in a miniature tornado. tearing the ground under it, the next instant the project hit a tree like a flying wood chipper, tearing, and grinding at anything in its proximity before it disappeared out of sight.

"Well, that one might be usable against those bastards since it doesn't explode," Ryou commented dusting his shoulder of the splinters.

"Fuee it worked, but… It's still dangerous to shoot in the tunnel…" His partner countered shedding her rapier.

"We'll see. We still have one day until my teleport cool-down resets so let's keep trying to come up with strategies and trying out new combinations. Next time we're going to get that Mithril for sure." The Bow Hero concluded, making his way back towards the village gates, the two girls falling in step with him.

* * *

_Next Chapter: Horrors in the Depths_

**Bow List**

_The following list of bows includes only the new bows that Ryou as unlocked since the begining of this arc to avoid confusion._

**[Giant Sloth Bow - Common - Sealed Equipment Bonus - + 4 Attack, Stamina Bonus(Small) - Special Effect - Attack bonus (Small), Agility penalty (Small)]**

_Bow from the Giant Sloth, Side Note, Stamina is not the same as SP, its literally a bonus to physical conditioning._

**[Dragon Tamer Bow I - Common - Awakened- Equipment Bonus - Dragon Growth Correction (Small), Dragon Maturation Correction(Small)]**

_Acquired from Quartz Egg Shards_

**[Dragon Tamer Bow II - Common - Awakened- Equipment Bonus - Dragon Growth Correction (Medium), Dragon Maturation Correction(Medium)]**

_Acquired From Quartz Feathers_

**[Dragon Tamer Bow III - Common - Awakened- Equipment Bonus - Dragon Growth Correction (Large), Dragon Maturation Correction(Large)]**

_Acquired with some of Quartz's Blood, following Ryou trying it out with Rishia's Blood._

**[Comrade Bow - Common - Awakened - Equipment Effect- Comrade Growth Correction (Small)]**

_Acquired From Rishia's Hair_

**[Comrade Bow II - Common - Awakened - Equipment Effect- Comrade Growth Correction (Medium)]**

_Acquired From Rishia's Blood_

**[Bio-luminescent Beetle Bow- Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - Night Vision Bonus (Small) - Special Effect - Bio-luminescent Light Emission]**

_Acquired from The Bio-Luminescent Beetle, Besides improving Night vision, its special effect works like a spot light._

**[Mascgite Bow - Common- Sealed - Equipment Bonus + 3 Magic, Magic Defense Bonus(Small), Magic Effectiveness Bonus (Small), Special Effect - MP Bonus(Small), MP Cost Reduction Bonus(Small)] **

_Acquired from the Mascgite Crystal found in the Northern Cavern, its a pure Magic based Bow_

**[Marble Horror Mimick Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - + 6 Attack, Hiding Bonus(Small)- Special Effect - Monster Lure(Small), Monster Attraction Range Bonus(Medium)]**

_Acquired From the Marble Mimicks, its special effect attracts monsters in the area._

**[Generic Medicine Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - Medicine Efficiency Bonus(Small)]**

_Acquired by Absorbing a Generic Healing Potion, gives a small boost to healing items in general._

**[Magic-Recovery Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - Magic Regeneration Bonus(Small)]**

_Acquired by Absorbing a Magic-Recovery Potion, gives a small boost to healing items in general._

**[Soul-Healing Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - SP Bonus(Small)]**

_Acquired by Absorbing a Soul-Healing Potion, gives a small boost to Ryou's SP pool._

**[Copper Coin Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - + 1 Appraisal Skill - Special Effect - + 1 Appraisal Skill]**

_Acquired by Absorbing a Copper Coin, gives a level to the Generic appraisal Skill, this stacks with more specific appraisal skills._

**[Silver Coin Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - + 2 Appraisal Skill]**

_Acquired by Absorbing a Silver Coin, like the last it increases the appraisal Skill, but by a factor of two levels._

**[Dragon Healing Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - Health Bonus(Small) - Health Recovery Bonus(Small), Dragon Healing Bonus(Small), Dragon Healing Items Crafting Recipes Unlocked - Special Effect - Dragon Healing Items Efficiency Bonus(Small), Dragon Healing Items Range Effect(Small)]**

_Acquired by Absorbing a Dragon Blessed Healing Potion, It boosts the effectiveness of dragon based healing items, along with their range, also unlocks the recipes to be used on the automatic-Crafting System._

**[Dragon Magic-Recovery Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - + 5 Magic - Magic Regeneration Bonus(Small), Dragon Magic Bonus(Small), Dragon Magic Recovery Items Crafting Recipes Unlocked - Special Effect - Dragon Magic Recovery Items Efficiency Bonus(Small)]**

_Acquired by Absorbing a Dragon Blessed Magic Recover Potion, It boosts the effectiveness of dragon based magic recovery items items, and gives a small boost to MP regeneration, also unlocks the recipes to be used on the automatic-Crafting System._

**[Dragon Soul Healing Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - SP Bonus(Small) - SP Regeneration Bonus(Small) - Dragon Sp Recovery Items Crafting Recipes Unlocked - Special Effect - Dragon SP Recovery Items Efficiency Bonus(Small)]**

_Acquired by Absorbing a Dragon Blessed Soul-Healing Potion, It boosts the effectiveness of dragon based SP recovery items items, and gives a small boost to SP regeneration, also unlocks the recipes to be used on the automatic-Crafting System._

**[Dragon Blessed Bow - Status Unlocked - Requirements - Not Met]**

_Unlocked after absorbing all three primary dragon based potions, it as an higher level requirement than what Ryou current possesses, though it still falls under the category of Dragon Healing Items for most part._

**Bows Copied From The Blacksmith**

**[Maple Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - + 3 Attack]**

**[Oak Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - + 2 Attack]**

**[Fir Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - 3 Attack]**

**[Long Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - + 4 Attack, Long Range Precision Bonus(Small)]**

**[Composite Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - + 3 Agility, + 3 Attack, Attack Speed Bonus(Small)]**

**[Yew Hunting Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - + 4 Agility, Small-Sized Animals Damage Bonus(Small)]**

**[Steel Hunting Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - + 4 Attack, Medium-Sized Animals Damage Bonus (Small)]**

**[Feathered Hunting Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - +3 Agility, Damage against Flying Enemies (Increased by 5%)]**

**[Short Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - + 4 Agility - Special Effect- Attack Speed Bonus(Great)]**

**[Gryphon's Feathered Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - + 5 Attack, + 5 Agility, Air Strike Arrow Skill]**

_The only one truly worth mentioning, It comes with the Bow Hero's Air Strike variant. Ryou's Air Strike Arrow, boost both piecing capabilities, and the ability to tear things around it, and it detonates in an Air Explosion. As shown it can be used in conjunction with Quartz's Fire Breath, for a change in element and additional destructive capabilities, or with Rishia's Wind Cuter Spell to greatly enhance, both the damage, and the area of effect, it does lose the ability to detonate in a shock-wave._

**S/N -**_ It's worth mentioning that Quartz is double dipping on the Grow Correction, falling under the category of both dragon, and comrade, not only that but as mentioned she already had an amazing stats base to begin with, henceforth the reason why Ryou mentioned that her own growth completely eclipsed Rishia's, and even made is own seem mild in comparison even as a hero._


	26. Horrors in the Depths

**A/N- **Hi guys, Godreal back once again with another chapter. on a side note this chapter was suppose to end the Northern Cavern expedition until I realized that it was more then twice as big as my normal ones, an as such I decided to cut it in half, and switch some stuff around, this also allowed me to stop it at the dreadful cliffhanger. I have no problem with chapters going a little above average length, but twice is far too much. Also for those that asked what Naofumi and company are doing, worry not there will be a small intermission showing exactly what they are up too coming.

Now lets get on with it. Where Ryou, and company deal with their problem, unfortunately the Northern Cavern isn't quite done with them, and Ryou gets another traumatic experience to add to the list, along with a freighting revelation.

* * *

**Chapter 26 - Braving Into a New World: Horrors in the Depths**

Morning came and went, with Ryou and his party coming up with simulations, and possible scenarios. After some brainstorming he and Rishia, (but mostly Rishia) had come up with a simple, if effective plan to deal with their problem, one that didn't exactly involve conspicuous amounts of fire.

The Bow Hero had also decided to have his party members carry a side pouch to stash potions, or a magic one attached to her gothic dress as far as Quartz was concerned.

While they did not have the opportunity to test out the _Dragon Blessed Healing Potions_, he had used the other two upgraded versions. Both the _Dragon Blessed Magic-Recovery Potions_ and the _Dragon Blessed Soul-Healing Potions_ worked wonders in terms of recovering their respective focus, not only that but they also temporarily increased their passive recovery by a small percentage.

Now walking through the dark confines of the Northern Cavern once more, the Bow Hero felt a lot more confident in their chances, his partner, however, did not share that sentiment.

"Ryou…" Rishia mumbled, her eyes moving from one side to another, trying to keep both additions to their group in her line of sight, "... I don't think this is safe at all."

Ryou shifted his gaze towards the green-haired girl for a moment, before returning it to what had his attention previously, "Perhaps, but Quartz appears to disagree with you."

The small girl in question lashed out with one hand, hitting a shining ball. The glowing bulb moved back before returning to its original position. Once more Quartz hit it again with her hand, eyes locked on the luminous appendage.

"No matter how friendly they seem, they are still wild monsters, they could attack us at any time." She warned, her hand gripping the handle of her rapier tighter.

_I think if they were going to attack us they would have done so by now._ Shrugging Ryou offered no response.

His eyes moved once more to Quartz who continued to hit the bulbous appendage of one of the two Eldritch Pigs that decided to escort them. The small girl had apparently decided that walking was above her so she took a seat on the creatures back. Before long the shining appendage had her complete attention, and she had turned back, content in playing with it.

One hand patted the creature in the side as it released a soft grunt, Ryou would have petted it on the head, if it weren't for the rows upon rows of sharp teeth that made up it's gaping maw.

_I'm crazy, but not that crazy..._The Bow Hero admitted to himself.

Moving closer to Rishia he nudged her lightly with his shoulder, "Calm down, they are only walking near us because of my Bow." He finished throwing what he thought was a reassuring smile.

_This thing attracts monsters like a flame attracts moths, but at least we won't get another surprise…_ Ryou's eyes fell on his new upgraded bow.

**[Marble Horror Mimick Bow - Awaken - Uncommon - Equipment Bonus - 6 + Attack, Hiding Bonus(Small) Detection Bonus(Small) - Special Effect - Monster Lure(Medium), Monster Attraction Range Bonus(Medium)]**

His new Bow was indeed a double-edged sword. On one hand, it attracted every monster in the vicinity, and such a thing made so they would come straight at him, preventing the _Marble Mimicks_ from pulling their shenanigans, and would eventually be a nice tool for leveling. On the other, the _Marble Horror Mimick Bow_ when equipped attracted everything, even passive monsters, as shown by the two abominations that were walking side by side with his party.

"Onii-shama, Quartz can smell the ugly white monsters," Quartz announced, her head slightly raised in the air as she took a couple more sniffs.

A soft glow emanated from Ryou's weapon, as he changed it to his _Bio-luminescent Bow_.

Quartz jumped off of her new friend as it shook its head from side to side before dashing into the darkness followed by the other one.

"Mean!" The small dragon accused finger pointing into the direction they had taken off.

Light bathed the tunnel, the walls now a lighter tone of grey with some patches of the dreadful white, though there were no pieces of marble on the ground.

"No sight of them yet, but I want your eyes on the ground as we planned." He ordered as they made their way through the tunnel.

Slowly but surely the white patches of marble became more prominent, and Ryou raised a hand as he spotted the first couple of fallen rocks a few meters ahead.

"Rish…" Ryou paused, a small grin blooming in his face, "...do your thing."

His partner came to a stop a couple of steps in front of him raising her hands into the air, "As source of thee power I order thee. Decipher the laws of Nature, and create a pond in front of me. Faust Water Splash!" The glowing magic formation in front of the girl's hands shined blue for a moment, and like a fire-hose, water explode from it.

The Magic spell that Rishia used to put out the accidental fires that their party keep creating, drenched the tunnel in front of them in water.

Ryou clenched his Bow in anticipation, "Quartz you know what to do." He said, throwing in a side glance to the girl.

The small girl nodded, turning their back to them, and raising her small fists towards the darkness to where they had come from as if shadowboxing an unseen foe.

"Ready Rishia?" Ryou asked, receiving a hesitantly but sharp nod in reply.

"Okay, here we go… Change Bow, Marble Mimick Horror Bow!" The shout was followed by his new bow materializing, and the effect became visible not even two seconds later.

Three humanoid creatures formed in front of the party, sluggishly making their way towards them, but Ryou could hear the gurgles, and hisses of many more beyond the darkness, many, many more.

"Wait for it, Rish!" Ryou ordered, lining his bow with the upcoming opposition," Rapid Arrow!"

Three arrows flew forward, followed quickly by two other barrages, puncturing holes in the creatures who fell into the shallow water with a loud splash.

Eyes on the front of him, Ryou began to see movement just beyond the shroud of darkness, and a second later, he patted his partner on the shoulder, "Light them up, Rish!"

The mage of the party, quickly crouched on the ground, just an inch away from the water, and placed a hand on its surface, "As source of thee power I order thee. Decipher the laws of Nature, and let lightning strike my enemies true. Faust Lightning Strike!"

A purple pentagram formed on top of the water, and small sparks shimmered in Rishia's hand, lightning soon followed, snaking across the surface and reflecting across the white walls.

An almost deafening choir of shrieks rebounded across the marble stone, as electric arcs danced on the multitude of monsters in front of them.

Arrows flew as quickly as bodies hit the electrified water, some of them punctured with holes others just releasing small wisps of smoke.

_Sometimes I forget that I have an Elementalist in my party, and with her arsenal, there is hardly any situation she doesn't have an answer too, given time to prepare that is…_ Ryou conceded between shots.

The idea had been supplied by his partner the day before, in the midst of brainstorming, since any other of their abilities, even Quartz fire breath had dangers to it. The new plan could be used to deal amazing amounts of damage but could also paralyze the monsters in place neatly solving their problem.

Lowering himself, behind the girl, Ryou pried open a bottle and brought it to her lips. Her face contorted in disgust but she drank it nonetheless, and the Bow Hero watched as her dwindling MP bar, slowly crawled back to full, much slower than it should, due to her being in the middle of channeling her spell.

A loud sound echoed behind them followed by a crash, and he only saw the aftermath of a collision between a _Marble Mimick_ that had managed to sneak up on them and Quartz's rising uppercut.

_Shoryuken!_ Ryou snorted at how apt his thought was.

The monster slammed into the ceiling cracking it, with such force that it burst open, showering the small girl in red, who didn't even bat an eye at being drenched in blood and guts, her body already in mid-motion, as she jumped almost touching the ceiling before curling and lashing with her tail. A sickening crunch echoed as her tail met the faceless head of another monster, breaking its neck instantly.

_What insane strength…_ Ryou shook his head in disbelief. Quartz would eventually turn into the powerhouse of their team, that was a given fact.

Looking towards his partner who kept frying and paralyzing the wave of monsters, Ryou took in her panting breaths, "Switch with me Rish, I can do it…"

Rishia gave him an uncertain look, before nodding slightly.

_Here it goes... Just as she taught you…_ Hand hovering just above the electrified water Ryou closed his eyes in focus, "As the source of thee power, and Yumi-no Yuusha, I command thee. Decypher the Laws of Nature and let lightning strike my enemies true. Faust Lightning Strike."

Lightning burst from Ryou's hand arcing in a far more savage manner than Rishia's. Placing his hand on the surface, like slithering snakes his spell race forward paralyzing the ensuing mob of monsters, and a choir of shrieks echoed once more.

Arcs of wind flew above his head, as Rishia slashed the air with her rapier releasing wave upon wave of ethereal wind that bisected entire groups of monsters, the water soon taking on a far darker tone.

The only spell in his arsenal had taken him most of the previous day to learn, and to adapt the incantation to himself with Rishia's help. Unfortunately just like learning from a crystal ball, his mastery over it paled in comparison to his partner who could modify the spell in various ways according to her wishes. Ryou could not do it though, the only thing he could do was gather what little magic he began to perceive from himself and cast the spell at full throttle.

Of course one of the first things Ryou had done when he had been able to manifest the spell, had been crouching low, before dashing forward at full speed, obliterating every boulder and tree he could see with a little bit of childish glee, as his lightning encased hand cut and burst through nature with impunity, finally realizing one of his teenager, otaku fantasies. The down part of the previous day had been the fifteen minutes it had taken him to explain to Rishia what exactly a _Chidori_ was, and it only took the girl five, to dash his hopes, and explain exactly how silly the idea of punching holes in monsters with first level magic was.

Light far brighter than what his lamp could provide reached the corner of his vision, and he caught the end result of Quartz bathing the tunnel behind them in fire, burning to ashes whatever opposition tried to sneak on them.

Eyes back on the front, the scene was one straight from a nightmarish horror. Countless mutilated bodies filled the tunnel, with each second more being added to the count. The water under his hand was almost pure black, yet it still served its purpose of conducting his spell.

_There is one plus to this massacre…_ He admitted gulping down the magic potion that Rishia had placed near his lips, while banishing the third warning window that came announcing that his smallest party member had leveled up, on the span of a few minutes.

It took another three minutes, and Quartz rising another level for the wave of incoming enemies to finally die down. With a suspicious glance towards the pile of mutilated monsters, Ryou pointed his bow towards the front, revealing nothing but death.

A strained exhale came from his mouth, "... Well, I think it's over…" The Bow Hero announced, cutting his spell short.

"Fuee… T-There were a lot of them." The green-haired girl commented, her face looking slightly paler even in the dim light.

"Yeah, there wer… Guh!" Ryou grunted from his crouched position.

Rishia crouched near him, a hand falling on his shoulder, "Ryou was wrong?"

The Bow Hero gritted his teeth as his body fought in vain against an unseen force, "I can't move!" He grunted again, and try as he might he couldn't move an inch.

A red window popped up in front of his vision, almost mockingly.

**[Weight Capacity Exceeded - Your Overburden]**

Blinking a couple of times at the warning, Ryou opened his inventory, to see that he was indeed carrying far more than he should, even if his caring capacity had been growing as he leveled. Willing his inventory to scroll down, the culprit instantly became noticeable.

"Well, that explains it…" The Bow Hero mumbled.

"...Ryou?"

**[Do you wish to convert this Item into Energy Points?]**

Focusing his vision on the yes option, Ryou continued to repeat the process, "I just went over my Legendary Bow weight capacity." He explained, before adding, "But I would love to know what I'm supposed to do with three hundred pieces of Marble…"

The girl's eyes went to the walls of the tunnel, widening in excitement, "We could build a statue!"

_Huh?_ Taking a pause from the conversion, Ryou's brows furrowed, "A Statue?"

Rishia nodded eagerly, a smile appearing in her face, "Yes, father has been considering it."

An uneasy feeling began to pool in his stomach, "Just what kind of statue are we talking about here?"

Her smile widened so much, her eyes crinkled, "Of you, Ryou."

"Rejected!" Ryou hissed. The last thing he needed would be a statue in his likeness, not only had he hardly done anything worth being immortalized in stone, but it would be extremely embarrassing.

_...Taking into account this is Almond we are talking about, he would probably try to add an even more troublesome tablet to go along with it…_

At last able to stand, Ryou let out a huff, "Quartz, can you clear us a way through that blockade?" He motioned, towards the pile of corpses that stood higher than he did.

Quartz nodded, then with a leap, she landed in front of the barrier, and with a puff of smoke, a dragon occupied most of the tunnel.

Turning his back away from the unpleasant sight, Ryou addressed his other problem, "Rishia, when you get back, your going to tell your father that I refuse to have a statue or any type of monument built in my honor."

Rishia's eyes went to the ground, as she clapped her hands in front of her, "Fuee… Okay…"

Ryou frown lightly, at the disappointment clear both on her face, and posture. He could understand, Almond and Rishia wanting to show their gratitude for his actions, but they were already doing more than enough. Sometimes Ryou felt he had even been abusing their goodwill. He had gotten his reward from toppling Gentlewood, along with gaining an invaluable party member, a roof over his head, and a place he could feel at peace away from the drama of Melromarc. All those things more than paid for what he had done.

A sound bounced from the walls, like scraping glass that hurt his ears, as Quartz landed near them, her yellow slitted eyes narrowed but clearly focused on the front.

Rishia's head lashed towards the end of the tunnel, as she gripped her rapier tightly in response to the sound of a new threat.

Posture going rigid, Ryou shinned light towards it. An involuntary shiver that started at the base of his neck and worked its way down his body came when he caught sight of a furry appendage, that scratched the ivory wall with its red claw. More limbs began to appear from just outside the reach of his light, many more, stretching all over the tunnel.

_Ohhh… My... God..._

Another shriek followed, from an unseen mouth, as it climbed over the still lingering bodies of the Marble Mimicks, and gnawing noises followed.

"Haaaa! That's Quartz dinner!" The small girl beside him moaned with more emotion that he had ever heard in her voice.

"Fuee! That's one big…

"Quartz torch it! Sneeze!" Ryou swiftly ordered, with a noticeably higher pitch in his voice.

The girl puffed out her chest, her eyes narrowing in anger, before releasing a torrent of flames, engulfing the monstrous arachnid in fire. The monster hardly could be categorized as a spider, being composed of mostly dozens of spider legs.

The monstrosity released another piercing sound, wriggling around with frantic movements as it tried to put out the flames.

"Double-tap it Quartz!" Ryou commanded again, clamping his hand over the small girl's shoulder and gripping it tightly.

Once more Quartz bathed the tunnel in fire, scorching the mutilated remains, along with putting an end to the inhuman shrieks of the newest horror.

After a few seconds, Ryou scrutinized the creature stretching his head to get a better look, and flinched when his eyes spotted the carbonized remains.

"Goddammit Rish, you said this was a Mithril mine, but between this Eldritch Abomination, the pigs, and the Marble Mimicks, I'm beginning to think this cavern is actually Cthulhu's Nursery!" Ryou yelled, pointing towards the monster in question.

"Fuuee! I'm sorry! Its s-suppose to be!" The girl apologized, lowering her head.

Taking a breath Ryou, sent her an apologetic look, while rubbing his neck," Sorry Rish, but that just freaked the hell out of me."

Raising her head, Rishia couldn't help but inquire,"Ryou are you afraid of spiders?"

He turned his eyes towards Rishia, who was blinking at him with a small downturn on her lips. There was a moment of awkward silence before his shoulders dropped in defeat.

"I'm totally afraid of spiders." He muttered. There was another moment of silence before giggling was heard.

Raising his head, he saw his partner attempting to hide her laugh behind both hands, however, her trembling shoulders gave her away.

With an irritated scowl, Ryou glanced to the side, "Yeah, yeah, get it out of your system, one of the mighty legendary heroes is afraid of arachnids."

From the edge of his vision, he saw her shaking her head, trying to reign in her laughter, "Its not that… Its...It's just that you are one of the Yuushas, and I know you already said it, but… but seeing you like this...I guess it makes you seem more human…" That could have been taken in a very bad way, but Ryou immediately understood the context, and his eyes softened a fraction.

"Rish, I might look strong to you, and have the title of hero, but at the end of the day I have fears, doubts, likes, and desires like everyone else, I'm just as human as you are."

Rishia nodded her head, a small smile on her face, even if her cheeks had a little more color in them. "I know, and understand that, but I guess… I guess sometimes it is easy to forget…" She trailed off, eyes moving to the floor again.

Ryou walked near the girl and tapped her shoulder. "You really shouldn't, especially you of all people, Partner..." Ryou finished with a grin. The girl's head shoot upward at the mention of her title, her cheeks gaining even more color, and she bobbed her head in agreement.

"Fueee! R-Right!" She exclaimed, stammering lightly, her expression looking somewhat embarrassed.

"Onii-shama… Is Cthulhu tasty?" The interruption came from the third member.

"I don't know, but I'm not sure if you can consider it seafood, or just straight cannibalism…" Ryou wondered, putting together the knowledge of the Eldrich beast slash god.

"Cannibalism? What exactly is a Cthulhu?" Rishia shifted in place attempting to picture it.

"It's a creature from a story or a myth? Its like half-dragon, half-octopus. Nasty fellow apparently is asleep at the bottom of the sea, and if it awakens it's bye-bye humanity…" Ryou explained, and Rishia let out a frightened gasp.

"How is that possible?!" The girl questioned suddenly afraid.

"Calm down Rish, it doesn't exist, not really. Besides its supposed to be a god, so yeah, not much you can do against something like that." Ryou admitted with a shrug. There were somethings one couldn't fight against, real or not.

"Sounds terrifying…" Rishia mumbled.

"Sounds tasty…" Quartz added placing a finger on her lower lip.

"Only you would think of eating Cthulhu, Quartz." Ryou shook his head in amusement at the antics of the dragon girl.

* * *

After the small break, the party resumed their way through the now free path. Eventually, the tunnels turned back to their normal composition mostly of grey stone, though they began twisting with curves and counter curves, and with far less branching. Quartz had also taken point temporarily during the expedition. Between the girl's astounding physical strength, and instincts, she was the closest thing his party had to a front-line fighter.

The small girl bulldozed through any opposition they came across, and Ryou felt more at ease with having a mobile flamethrower, when a second, and third spider made its presence known.

They had also come across some Eldrich Pigs, sporting a red coloration, and those had been hostile, but even they fell victim to the might if small fists of the dragon girl.

It took roughly another hour before they finally reached the end of the tunnel, and walked into a gigantic gallery.

Hand lashing, Ryou pulled Quartz back by the hem of her dress, "Stop!"

The small girl gazed at him confused, but the Bow Hero offered nothing else, his eyes studying the new area.

The huge dome-like area, stretched into the distance, with the ceiling filled with Crystal Stalagmites that offered their own blue dim glow - same glow that bounced off the walls with a metallic shine.

"Rish look at the walls…" He pointed out. The girl also narrowed her eyes slightly to examine it, before her expression brighten in realization.

"That's mithril!" She exclaimed, making Ryou's lips twitch.

_Of course, it is..._ Ryou mused sarcastically _...like I'm not getting the boss arena vibe from this place at all, it couldn't be more obvious if it had a fog wall..._

Surveying the area again, Ryou looked with suspicion to the wide round holes on the ground, and on the walls, wide enough for a pick-up truck to fall in.

_Those are far too flawless to be natural…_ Still, seeing nothing that immediately screamed hostile, he took gradual steps further into the area, now on the front of the party.

Instincts on high alert he threw Quartz a glance, "Quartz, do you smell or feel anything?"

The girl, took a few sniffs with her small nose, before shaking her head. Ryou nodded and proceeded to turn to the front when something got his attention.

"What the..?" He exclaimed in confusion. The reason being, the hole they had walked in was no more, a wall with the mystical metal encroached in it, in its place.

_A hidden mechanism, or trap?_ Ryou questioned, as his partner released her verbal tic when she realized that there way out was gone.

The party approached the new mysterious wall, and Rishia laid a hand on it. The girl dipped her head, expression turning even more inquisitive.

"Fueee... It's warm to the touch."

"Warm?" The Bow Hero asked, his brain attempting to figure out the new mystery.

Quartz took two sniffs of the mysterious wall, stopping for a moment before turning around in a blur, hes eyes wide open. In a burst of speed, she hooked an arm around Rishia's waist earning a startle whelp from the green-haired girl, as she effortlessly dashed past him.

"Onii-shama move!" There was a tone of urgency in her voice, and Ryou felt the earth under him move. With a slow side glance, he found himself gazing into a void, a fleshy packed to the brim with pointy curved teeth, void, the space extending beyond what his bow allowed to see.

On instinct he jumped back into the room, watching as the hole closed where he was standing, a groan reverberating in the area, similar in Ryou's ears to a whale.

Then something came out of the tunnel, a black tunnel-shaped form, that shined with the same glow as mithril, far larger than anything he had ever come across.

"Fuee what's that?!" Rishia questioned in horror, unfortunately, Ryou couldn't answer since he was busy putting some distance between himself, and the worm like monstrosity, that was still creeping out of the tunnel.

_How did such a big thing sneak up on us without we noticing?!_ "Fire Shot!" The blazing missile hit the creature on the side, the dome of fire like construct from his attack forcing its body to the side, but the flames rolled off its protective plating, hardly showing any damage.

Eyes widening Ryou watched hunched as the creature elevated itself in the air, nearly touching the high ceiling, before exposing it's now-familiar maw. Five flaps like petals spreading themselves in five separate directions, and from its depths it released a roar that rocked the entire cavern.

_Cthulhu Nursery indeed… This thing is on a completely different level from the rest of the monsters here!_ "Change bow, Great Fanged Bow! Rapid Air Strike Arrow!" Ryou yelled.

The arrows flew with a high pitch noise, crossing the distance and puncturing holes in the monster exiting on the opposite side, before detonating in shock-waves of wind on the wall.

The upper part of the worm trashed around at the sudden injury, boulders, and crystals dropping down from the ceiling.

In an attempt to evade the rocks, Rishia dodged left, and to the horror of the Bow Hero, the beast immediately stopped and locked on Rishia before coming down on the girl, attempting to swallow her whole.

Quartz was on it within a moment ramming the side of its head, now in dragon form forcing it off course, however, the worm didn't even slow down, and begun to drill into the ground, in a second the creature was underground, its movements shaking the floor under them.

The Bow Hero's head shifted from side to side quickly, trying to anticipate where the worm would come from. A crashing sound came from his right, as the top of the monster's head broke through the ground.

Tugging on his string, three more_ Air Strike Arrows_ were released, punching more holes in its frame, as the head dropped down aligning itself with Ryou, and opening its jaws.

_Now!_ Ryou materialized another burning arrow, as the air began to waver. Releasing the flaming projectile, the Bow Hero followed it with his eyes as it flew, before colliding with an unseen barrier of distorted air inside the worm's mouth, the arrow dissolving the next instant.

"Ohh boy..." Ryou breath out, as blue lightning began to accumulate at the back of the worm's throat, and a low humming strained his ears, one that slowly grew both in strength, and pitch.

A large flaming orb exploded against the side of the creature's head, followed immediately by a torrent of fire, making it move slightly to the side, but hardly delivering any visible damage. The moment the flames disappeared, Quartz once again crashed against the worm, pushing it even more to the side, however, the creature quickly returned the favor lashing with far more strength, sending the dragon sliding across the ground before it crashed against the wall on the other side.

The monster once more locked onto Ryou, who had sprung into action dashing in the opposite direction of his party, knowing full well that a direct hit from what was coming would instantly kill any of them.

The vibration rattled at his bones, and from the corner of his vision, he saw the monster close its mouth and rearing back. Ryou dived forward, as an earth-splitting roar exploded, followed by a pillar of blue light, that passed right where the Bow Hero had been standing previously. The distorted heatwave encompassing the beam seared his skin, and he clenched his teeth as it felt like he was being cooked alive, the force sending him flying through the air before smashing into the ground far further than intended.

The blue beam hit the wall melting through mithril and stone alike like a hot knife through butter, quaking the whole cave.

Rolling on his side, Ryou's eyes widen even as his vision clouded slightly, and he rolled once more to avoid a large crystal stalagmite, that dropped right where he had been laying.

Within a moment he rose to all fours, clumsily attempting to regain his footing as the ground under him trembled. A weird sound reached his ringing ears, and he turned his head to see Rishia's lips moving like she was yelling, her eyes wide with horror, but the Bow Hero never heard what the girl was saying, or even saw the shadow being cast over him, only catching sight of a pinkish petal-like appendage from the edge of his vision before darkness claimed him.

* * *

"I think he's waking up." A dull voice sounded in the background.

There was a short pause, "Can you even call this waking up, though?" Another much closer voice inquired.

Ryou moaned, feeling his body as battered as when he had been hit by a car the first time around, or when he had almost been mauled too death courtesy of the Great Dire Wolf.

Cracking open his eyes, he blinked away the fogginess to see a vaguely familiar ceiling.

"What happened? Where am I?" Ryou asked, his voice sounding strained.

"Hi ,bro!" The voice sounded familiar in the Bow Hero's ears, and swinging his head to the side he came face to face with his own visage.

The apparition beamed, and opened its arms in a grand fashion, "Welcome…." He drawled in mock suspense, it's voice dropping just above a whisper, "...to the Batcave…"

"What?" Ryou gaped in incredulity. Before him stood his old room. His desktop in his desk, above it a wall saturated with anime and game posters.

"... as for what happened, " The figure continued without pause, "You got eaten by a big ass worm, something that while remarkably funny, is also…"

"I actually find it insulting, though in his defense that monster is not even close to anything normal, boss of the cavern or not…" Another voice came from the corner, the owner seated on his office chair, and just like the other figure this one could also pass as his doppelganger, the only difference being the heavy eye bags, along with eeary golden glowing eyes.

"You would! And who cares if it's normal or not, he still became dinner anyways..." The figure crouched on the carpet near the bedside exclaimed, before returning his gaze to Ryou, "...as I was saying... While it was hilarious, it is also somewhat aggravating, and that does nothing for my already short fuse."

"Tiny fuse you mean?" The one seated in the chair questioned with a raised brow.

"Stop doing that!" The one in front of the Bow hero hissed, "You're always doing that, you patronizing bastard!"

"Go suck a dick." Replied the yellow-eyed Ryou offhandedly.

"Ah!" The twin on the ground cried out with a grin, "The joke is on you, you bastard! If I suck a dick, you also suck a dick, as does this guy!" He ended pointing to Ryou.

The gesture finally broke Ryou out of his funk. Shaking his head he scowled at both figures, "Okay what the actual fuck is this, who the fuck are you guys and why am I back in my room?!"

The outburst only made the two figures blink, before the closest switched into a crossed leg seated position, placing his palms on his knees."To answer your questions in reverse order, this place is your mind-scape, slash your subconscious, slash whatever mental mumbo jumbo title you feel like slapping on this space, it only looks like your old room because I, took the liberty of making it cozier. As for who we are…" The figure paused, grinning once more, "You're a bright guy... You're me, in a way, so I'm sure you can figure it out."

The doppelganger stared expectantly at Ryou, who's glare only got more severe with each passing second, feeling his patience running out, but before he could reply, his copy lost it before he did.

"Fine!" The twin seated on the ground exclaimed, thrusting his arms into the air, "I'll give you a hint," with a wave of its hand, a familiar window materialized in front of Ryou.

Symbols of Bows rested before him, all the ones he had unlocked since becoming the Yumi-no Yuusha, some in groups, others separated, but it was a window he recognized by heart, and he felt confused at the action.

"Ohh gods is this how you're going to explain it?!" The figure on the chair exclaimed, holding his palm to his forehead.

The twin on the ground turned his head slightly to the corner, offering only a wide grin.

The yellow-eyed Ryou deadpan at the other figure, "This is not going to end well... He's already making wrong assumptions in his head as it is! I'm out." With those words, the figure faded from existence leaving only an empty chair behind.

"I find it ironic that given what he is, or rather what he supposedly represents, that he would jump ship… Well, whatever." The remaining figure dismissed, eyes returning to Ryou. Waving his hand again, the Bow Tree Window rearranged itself. A grim feeling filled Ryou as animated lightning erupted from the center of the window, drawing all the bows towards the center where they converge into a single red-glowing symbol.

Before the Bow Hero could utter a single word, a small red window emerged, and Ryou's eyes widen in shock, a chill moving through his body, leaving behind a numbing feeling.

"Does this answer your question?" The figure questioned amused, its greenish-brown eyes gaining a sinister red glow.

**[Bow of Rage - Status - Unsealed - Requirements - Met]**

"Impossible... There's no way…" Ryou whispered but the small tremor in his voice obvious.

"I'm pretty sure you said that when we got our mutual asses Isekaied to this world, and yet here we are. Funny… Isn't it?"

* * *

_Next Chapter - Omens of a Coming Storm_


	27. Omens of a Coming Storm

**A/N -** Hi guys I'm here with another Chapter, one that took a while, since there were a few last minute additions that I wanted to add. I also would like to warn everyone, that next week there will be no update unfortunately. I have some stuff going on in my personal life, and that along with work, makes it writing a little hard sometimes.

So here we go... Where Ryou as a conversation inside his mind, things just keep going from bad to worst, and the Bow Hero tries to do a little planing for the future...

* * *

**Chapter 27 - Braving Into a New World - Omens of a Coming Storm**

Ryou continued to observe the ominous red window that almost seemed to burn something inside of him.

_Cursed... _Just as Naofumi had been. The weapon that at one point in a different setting had almost claimed Raphtalia's life, now had claimed him as its owner.

"How..? When..?" Ryou asked the same questions that keep repeating themselves in his head.

"The how will take far too much time for me to bother explain, however, when is easy. Once upon a time, there was this big bad wolf that decided we were going to be dinner, remember?" The apparition bearing his face mentioned casually.

Furrowing his eyebrows, Ryou tried to recall the unpleasant night. He could hazily remember the anger that kept running through his veins during the entire fight, only gaining in strength as it went on, before vanishing the moment Raphtalia, and Naofumi arrived.

_At that time..?_ Sure he had been fighting for his life, and while in the beginning, he had been afraid, his fear soon gave away to anger. He had never questioned or even thought about where that bout of unreasonable rage had come from, only being thankful, because the anger made him sprung into action, and saved his life

Another dark thought crossed his mind as he took in the existence of his twin, one he found himself voicing. "Is this the part where I have to fight my dark self for control over my body?" Ryou asked blandly.

The other Ryou blinked, before releasing a snort followed by loud laughter, as he hugged his midsection, almost falling on the ground.

Ryou continued to watch with narrowed eyes wondering exactly what his evil twin found so amusing about his question.

Reining in his mirth, the other Ryou met his eyes once more, amusement apparent in his face."That would be the most cliche thing ever wouldn't it?" He chuckled, shaking his head before continuing, "Fortunately that's not the case. Not only would I not gain anything from it, but it would also be very counterproductive for our goal?"

"Our goal?"

The figure nodded, "Yes, didn't I tell you? I'm you, and I'm also your anger, and hatred and all those pesky feelings, and much more."

"See? This is why I told you not to do the introductions, with the way you went about it, there was no way he wasn't going to come to the wrong conclusion." The voice came once again from the corner, followed by a flicker of light as the yellow-eyed Ryou once again appeared on the chair

"That was fast, I figured you wouldn't come back so soon." The red-eyed one commented.

"I only went to check on his condition..." The yellow-eyed apparition explained before his eyes fell on Ryou, "...congratulations you're the first man in history to set foot inside the stomach of a giant worm." He clapped slowly, "I'm pretty sure Rishia isn't very good at keeping secrets, so Naofumi is going to find out about this and he's going to laugh his ass off. Let's just pray it doesn't reach the other two."

"Tch, Ren should be more worried about fixing that hot-shot but not quite, personality of his, and Motoyasu should just be thankful the FBI doesn't exist here, or his biggest concern would be not dropping any soaps." The one closest to the bed scoffed, in barely concealed hostility.

Ryou decided to cut the conversation about his fellow heroes right there. "So no fighting for control over my body then?" He asked once more. His doubts weren't baseless though he had seen Naofumi wrestling with the Curse Series, and with a dragon's soul after all.

The yellow-eyed one, crossed his arms as he released a loud sigh, "No, there will be no fighting. Just ignore this idiot, he's just screwing with you." He sent a pointed glare towards the other figure who only shrugged with a grin before continuing, "To get a full explanation of what we are would be impossible, because even we, don't truly understand it. What we do know is, we came into sentience when you got summoned, so that should tell you we aren't the curse series for obvious reasons. If I were to give us a definition, it would be something among the lines of, we are the part of you that links you to the Curse Series."

Ryou absorbed the information with a grain of salt, but since his twins didn't appear aggressive, and were actually attempting to explain the situation he decided to accept it.

"So... When I got summoned I developed Multiple-Personality Disorder, is that it?" Ryou wondered with a frown.

"That's not really correct either, but for simplicity's sake let's go with that." The yellow-eyed allowed.

Ryou once again tried to understand the current situation, and be proactive. He had unlocked the Curse Series that was a reality he couldn't escape from, although it begged the question.

"Why are there two of you?"

"As he introduced himself, he is the part that links you to the Wrath Cursed Series, and although he doesn't act like it, he is in some ways the embodiment of your anger…" The yellow-eyed figure explained.

"I actually prefer Angry Ryou, it's simpler, though I acknowledge that Wrath as a nice ring to it." The red-eyed Ryou interjected.

Releasing another heavy breath the one seated on the chair closed his eyes for a moment, "You would have eventually figured it out, but I'll help you… The Curse Series are based on the seven deadly sins…" He paused opening his eyes, his gaze meeting Ryou's, "...and I'm Pride, or what links you to the Pride Curse Series."

"P-Pride?!" Ryou stuttered in shock, "When was I ever prideful to begin with?!" He could hardly remember a moment where he had been excitingly prideful, in reality, he did have his pride but no more than the average guy he ventured.

_I can even safely say that any of the other three are way more prideful then I am, even Naofumi! _

The two apparitions locked eyes for a moment, before the one that had introduced himself as his Pride smiled without humor, "Once again you're thinking too linearly, although I can understand, Wrath is the one you have the biggest understanding, which isn't even all that much, to be honest. Pride, however, is a little more complex than that, it does come in various ways, though what's important is the emotions that you felt, when you practice that Sin in question. Also, take into consideration that the Curse Series aren't exactly rocket science. What clicked it for Naofumi vastly differs from what works for you." The Yellow-eyed Ryou paused for a few seconds, before uncrossing his arms, and leaning as he folded his hands. "Here's the thing Ryou, you seem to be under the impression that there is this bar that measures emotions, and once it reaches its limit, the Curse Series become available."

"That's not really how…" Ryou began but stopped short when the copy raised his hand in the air.

"Let me ask you this... Where exactly is it written, that once you were summoned, all those emotions and traumas that you stashed away in your past suddenly reset themselves?" The figure asked lightly.

Ryou's eyes found themselves locked on a distinct poster on the wall, but his thoughts far away. The answer to his twin's question clear on his mind. _Nowhere__…_ He had been summoned whole, with his memories, feelings, and emotions.

"Look… I wouldn't exactly call the other heroes cuddled, but even Naofumi himself lived a mostly easygoing life in his world, a normal life. That also made the shock of what he went through worse in some ways. You, on the other hand, are full of anger and in some ways pride, there just stashed deep inside. We are those feelings, that were given sentience once you crossed over. By the time you set foot on this world, you were already a step away from the Curse Series... The fuel was already there, you only lacked the trigger to connect us to our respective series."

_To think I was trying to run away from it, and they were just one step behind__…_ Ryou took a deep breath, "So what your saying is that I was basically fated to unlock them?" He asked receiving a nod in response, "But if that's the case… If it's even that serious, why hasn't it manifest itself before?" He could remember a few instances where he had gotten quite pissed.

"That's because we have been putting a lid on it…" The Angry-Ryou interjected, and seeing Ryou's confused expression he continued, "...Look the story made light of these things, more so because Naofumi is a special case. You, however, are not… You haven't even began to realize how much you have bottled up inside you. When one curse gets called upon, and _you will _call upon it, both will answer, and every feeling that you shoved aside since our parents died in that fire, will burst out in a magnificent, and terrifying way."

Ryou cringed slightly at the mention of his parents before voicing his thoughts, "You're making me sound like a time-bomb…"

"Not a time-bomb per se, more like a remote-controlled one, and you have the trigger…" Angry-Ryou explained as the light flickered once more.

"Your starting to wake up…" The yellow-eyed Ryou commented with a click of his tongue, "... Our time is running out, so let's cut this short. What he means is that there is no way you will be able to control it. We might be able to stop you from targeting Rishia, and Quartz but everything else in the vicinity might as well have a big, red bullseye on their back. We should be able to pull the plug when the time comes, but don't misunderstand, that doesn't translate into you having control in any way shape or form. " He finished, his face wavering like smoke, and soon the entire room was rippling like a stone had been cast into the fabric of reality.

"I can tell what's going through your head, but let me assure you, now that the door is unlocked, and your hand is already on the knob, you will twist it. Just bear in mind that whatever you think you know about the Curse Series is either a censored version of it or outright false. Naofumi came out of it relatively unscathed but they are called cursed for a reason, and for their astonishing power you will pay an equivalent price." The red-eyed Ryou warned, his narrowed eyes almost glowing as he faded.

"You asked about the Pride Curse Series right? Just like Wrath, the feelings behind it came mostly from your old life, but they got punctuated here in this one. Every hero even Naofumi as some manner of delusion, and you are no exception. You haven't yet realized what your biggest flaw is, and that is directly tied to the Pride Cursed Series, so when you have time do a little soul-searching, I hope it will come to you, before some tragedy happens..." the room was twisting now, growing dimmer every second. "...and since we are issuing advice, let me give you one last one… Preserving the Status Quo benefits no one, least of all us."

"What do you mean?" Ryou asked but his question was never answered as darkness once more surrounded him.

* * *

It was tight, far too tight for comfort, and opening his eyes, Ryou could hardly grasp his surroundings from the small light that emanated from the lantern on his hip, but even that dim light was enough to confirm his suspicions.

_Am I really inside a worm__'s stomach?_ There was a trace of disbelief in that thought as the reality of his situation asserted itself, but before Ryou could even begin to freak out, something slimy ran down his cheek, yet it left a sizzling trail that felt like lava against his skin.

"Hell no!" Ryou snarled, his _Mascgite Bow_ manifesting itself in his grip as he pushed against the fleshy walls.

Planting one hand against the muscle that threatened to crush him, Ryou closed his eyes and began chanting through clenched teeth, "As the source of thee power, and Yumi-no Yuusha I command thee. Decipher the Laws of Nature and let lightning strike my enemies true. Faust Lightning Strike!"

The effect instantaneous, as blue arcs of lightning filled his vision, and he gritted his teeth doubling his efforts against the now contracting walls.

"I'm getting out of here even if I have to crawl my way out of your fried body you stupid worm!" He hissed, using his gripping skill on his feet, to stick to the same spot, as his world shifted, and an inhuman earsplitting screech reached him.

Clumsily, but hastily he was able to retrieve a _Dragon Blessed Magic-Recovery Potion_. Maneuvering his bow to seat on his wrist, and even though some of the content spilled, he was still able to swallow some of it.

_I have enough potions to keep doing this all week if I need to!_ Ryou reasoned in defiance, as the smell of burning flesh almost made him gag, black spots appearing where the arcs of electricity connected.

After what felt like an eternity, and two more potions later, the constricting feeling lost strength, yet Ryou still kept his spell going for nearly another half-minute.

Letting the lightning die down, he took in a sharp breath, and relaxed just a fraction, before trying to determine his position. Slowly he began to crawl through the soft if repugnant tunnel.

Why me..? Ryou questioned miserably, using his bow as support to widen the gap, as he crawled.

_Ren doesn__'t have to go through this crap, Naofumi doesn't go through this crap either… Neither does Motoyasu… The Bow Hero mused, dragging his body along. ...I bet the only thing he as to deal with, that's this wet feels a lot better._

"Great, like I need any more traumatic experiences in my life, next thing I know I'll have another Curse Series to add to the list, maybe I should try for all seven…" Ryou mumbled while moving slightly to the left, to avoid a pointy bone protrusion.

He came to a stop as he felt a small breeze, and then at a faster pace he returned to crawling, carefully avoiding the teeth that were everywhere, even then some still scratched his body. Finally approaching a dead end, he pushed, feeling the wall in front of him giving away, as fresher, if moldy air reached him.

"Freadooo..! Ohhhhhhh Shit! Chain Arrow!" The Bow Hero screamed as he fell into a dark abyss. One hand grasping the chain, he felt the friction drag on for far longer than it should, before coming to a sudden halt.

Taking another breath, Ryou looked around, the light from his lantern illuminating everything around him yet nothing could be seen besides darkness.

"Where the fuck am I?" He questioned out loud, his voice echoing multiple times in the distance.

Changing his Bow, he aimed it around but even with the boost in brightness, he could hardly see the ceiling, and the stalagmites that covered it. Aiming it downward, his light bounced off murky waters, as another vast underground lake lay beneath him.

Something below the surface moved, before breaking it. Letting out an unintentional gasp, Ryou jerked back as a slithering appendage, passed in front of him.

Face contorting in anger, the Bow Hero brought the string to his mouth, aiming down, pulling on it with his teeth, Rapid Air Strike Arrow! A whistling projectile flew, followed by two other streaking ones, hitting the water and detonating a moment later, splashing him, even at such heights.

Foam started forming above the water, gaining a more purple hue to it, which made Ryou grin. The grin soon fell from his mouth, as something far larger broke the surface yet again, revealing a gaping maw surrounded by sickening grey colored tentacles, that lashed in the air like angry snakes.

"Today is not my day… Chain Arrow!" Another arrow sailed upwards, finding purchase on the ceiling, a moment later the Bow Hero was swinging on a chain, away from the monsters reach, slowly climbing it.

The monster withdraw its tentacles and closed its jaws, its indescribable visage quivering, before opening it far wider.

Ryou's face went pale, as shimmering orange lightning began to accumulate inside its jaws, "You have got to be kidding… More lasers?!" His frustrated cry easily dwarfed by the humming noise from below.

Grasping a stalagmite, Ryou released another chain arrow, that hit the sidewall of the tunnel he had most likely fallen from. The humming died down, and what followed had the Bow Hero cursing the high heavens, has instead of a focused beam, what shot in his direction were multiple diffused streams of light.

Once again swinging in his chain Ryou clenched his teeth, trying to maneuver around the beams, that were being channeled from below, and the falling rocks, that fell from the ceiling all around him.

_Come on, Come on..! Shit! _He hissed as his arm brushed one of the searing orange lights, burning through his armor, and skin as he reached the entrance of the tunnel. Taking one last look, he saw the monster disappearing in darkness, as the light show died down, followed by another roar.

Shoulders slumping Ryou closed his eyes briefly, "I'm giving up on cave delving, until I'm level one hundred, and have ten more party members or so…" He mumbled, slowly walking up the vertical wall.

The tunnel rocked, as another roar came from below, and Ryou slowly turned his head, to see the latest monstrosity crashing against the opening just a few meters under him and clinging there, its maw trying to fit in an attempt to swallow him.

His _Great Fanged Bow_ materialized itself followed by a flaming arrow bursting from his yellow jewel, "Fuck Off!" Ryou roared.

The flaming projectile soared with others soon following, all of them exploding in flames, that shook everything around him and bathed both Ryou and the monster.

One more barrage of flaming arrows followed, and with the issuing explosions, the monster lost its grip, and fell like a flaming meteorite.

Lowering his bow, he hunched slightly, his breath coming out heavy, and his eyes closing halfway, as he brought out another brown glowing flask, and drank it.

Wiping his mouth, a soft humming reached his ears, and he stared blankly at the darkness under him, before turning his neck to peek upwards, his eyes squinting as a shining blue light emanated from above. An instant later a small humorless smile that threatened to turn into something darker broke through his face, as he saw what was coming down the tunnel.

_Is this some form of Divine Punishment?_

Releasing his gripping skill, Ryou fell once more, leaving the tunnel behind as an arrow with a chain attached, flew diagonally. Another bellow came from under him, along with enough water to drench him once more, even as he swung from the chain. A piercing sound echoed, followed, by a blue shining pillar of light, that crashed down from above, obliterating the monster in the water.

_Enough is enough give me a break, please__…_ Ryou begged, his eyes closing with a small wince, as he slammed against a rock on the ceiling.

More water erupted, as the Giant worm hit the lake and he almost went deaf with the different pitched shrieks and roars that followed. Waves surged everywhere, from the previous still waters, as the Worm raised itself mouth already glowing with a dreadful blue light, bringing with it countless tentacles attached.

A literal storm of orange beams,surged from under the surface, quaking the underground area. A far larger blue beam followed, as the worm released its deadly attack into the lake spliting it in two.

As the lights died down slightly Ryou swiftly made his retreat back into the tunnel, leaving behind the unreal battle that was going on under him.

_Fuck this__…_ He decided, face blank, yet his entire body quivered uncontrollably, both from adrenalin, and from a myriad of emotions he couldn't even begin to pinpoint, besides one in particular, and by far the most prominent one.

_Fuck cave-delving,.. Fuck Marble Mimicks... Fuck Spiders... Fuck Mithril... Fuck Giant Worms... Fuck Multiple-Personality Disorder,.. Fuck the Kraken thing... Fuck Lasers... Finally fuck this day in general, and fuck me for ever thinking this would be a good idea... Rishia was right, Mithril wasn't worth this crap.._. One foot, then another he continued to climb the never-ending tunnel, through curves, and counter curves.

"_Onii-shama?_" He released a small sigh of relief, as the familiar voice reached is mind.

_"Yes, I__'m here Quartz…"_ He replied his tone as monotonous as hers.

"_I knew you were alive! Quartz could sense you, but Onee-shama didn't believe Quartz. Where are you?"_ She questioned.

He could finally see a small speck of light directly above him, that was gradually becoming larger with each step,_"I'm coming up the tunnel…"_ He did question how exactly the young dragon could sense him for about two seconds before shoving those thoughts into the corner of his mind.

It felt like an eternity until his hand came to grip the ledge of the hole, and with a slow but steady heave, he climbed out. Raising himself to a standing position, narrowed eyes quickly found his party members, as he sniffed audibly.

"Ryou, Thank goodness!" Rishia blurted out. The girl quickly broke into a short dash, before faltering slightly and coming to a stop near him.

Quartz soon followed suit, "Onii-shama you're not food anymo…", She paused, taking a couple of sniffs, her face scrunching, one hand hastily gripping her nose, "...Onii-shama you need a bath!"

Ryou's entire body trembled, "Shut up…" The Bow Hero hissed through clenched teeth, "...You have no idea what my last fifteen minutes were like, so don't even start…"

Taking a shaky breath, he passed both of his party members, making his way towards a blue gleaming wall, "Rishia, next time you decide to propose a place to explore, please don't."

"Fuee...".

"Fuee, indeed... Drilling Arrow!" Ryou declared, as his arrow hit the far wall, drilling through the mystical ore.

**[Mithril Ore x 10 Acquired]**

**[Mithril Ore x 7 Acquired]**

**[Mithril Ore x 12 Acquired]**

The Bow Hero repeated the process a couple more times, through narrowed eyes. His party only looking at his back in silence.

_A nice hot bath to relax, and after that, I__'m going to hit Almond's Top shelf stuff, and drink until I pass out, and get this whole day behind me…_ The Bow Hero nodded to himself. While he wanted to change and step out of his comfort zone, he had meant it gradually, but to his dismay, his wishes, and the world's seemed to be in slight disagreement on that front, not even counting the whole Curse Series situation.

After his inventory had been filled with mithril, he turned to face his party, who were looking at him with both apprehension and confusion respectively.

"We are leaving, and aren't returning for as long as I still remember this place." He declared seriously.

Both girls blinked, accepting the declaration wordlessly.

Raising a hand into the air as he prepared to teleport, Ryou's entire face twitched when he felt the ground shaking under him.

A loud crashing sound echoed followed by a familiar roar, as the Giant Worm crawled out of the tunnel. It's body littered with holes and gashes, some of its mithril plating absent, as well as one of its petal-like flaps. Shaking its head, purple blood stained the ground and walls around it.

"Fuee Ryou let's leave..." Rishia advised fearfully.

Gritting his teeth, the Bow Hero lowered his arm, "Quartz, go distract it for twenty seconds or so." Ryou hissed.

The small girl turned her sight away from the monster, her face etched in confusion, "Twenty seconds? How much is…"

"Just go." The Bow Hero growled interrupting the girl his Status window opening in front of him an instant later.

A puff of smoke exploded, and with a roar, a wave of fire hit the worm in the side catching its attention, followed by a body slam that sent the monster crashing against the wall.

Righting itself, the worm opened his maw and dived down crashing and borrowing into the ground, failing to swallow the now small girl that transformed back and escaped through the empty space where the flap was missing.

The ground quaked, and Quartz sniffed the air, before backflipping as the floor that she had been standing previously exploded upwards.

The worm released another almost frustrated roar that was quickly cut short by another fire breath that hit its head.

"Quartz get out of the way!" The Bow Hero yelled as a yellow shining light bloomed from his hand, far brighter than usual, and begun to cover the space in front of him.

**[Balista + 7 - Rare - Equipment bonus - + 5 Attack - Special effect - Attack Bonus (Great), Skill Effectiveness Bonus( Medium), Penetration Bonus (Medium), Movement Speed Penalty (Great), Attack Speed Penalty(Medium)]**

Bolts made of fire pierced the air between him and the monster even before the siege instrument had fully materialized.

The small girl made herself scarce, as the bolts expanded on contact, the resulting domes of fire, filling nearly a quarter of the giant gallery, and sending the worm crashing down.

"Rapid Air Strike Arrow!" More bolts flew, punching holes in the monster wide enough for a man to walk through, as Ryou quickly gulp down another potion.

_This thing needs to die right now!_ "Rishia, Quartz sync with me!"

"Fueeee!" The girl cried as she stumbled upon the shaking ground, coming to a stop against the siege weapon, and laid her rapier on top of it, "As thee source of power, I order thee. Decipher the laws of nature and cut the air in front of me. Faust Wind Cutter!"

Quartz came to a stop near them both, her cheeks already puffed, before she released her own fire breath onto the bolt.

"Dragon Flare Strike Arrow!" Ryou roared. The moment he pressed the trigger, the party was sent tumbling as the projectile covered in a raging flaming tornado flew.

The giant projectile tore through the body of the giant worm, like a hot knife through butter, before detonating against the cavern wall behind the creature. The explosion that followed sent the worm's severed head flying before crashing near the party.

Another crash followed as the remains of the worm's body hit the ground slithering for a few moments before coming to a complete stop.

One of the flaps from the worm's mouth fell right next to the Bow Hero, who glared at the offending appendage gasping, "And stay dead…", he paused to take a deep breath, "...for good this time!"

"Fuee... Is it over?" Rishia asked, approaching the creature's head hesitantly. Quartz who was already next to the severed appendage, tapped the creature with her foot twice, before nodding to herself.

"Yup, it's gone, and ready to be eaten!"

The excitement in her voice, made Ryou close his eyes for a brief moment."Quartz… If something is cooked, then I can almost guarantee you that it's dead."

Rising to his feet, the Bow Hero decided to absorb the parts of the worm before leaving the cavern for good. Approaching the head of the worm, he stripped it of a piece of its protective layer.

**[Bio-Engineered Mithril-Plated Worm Armored Bow - Common - Equipment bonus - + 8 Defense Magic Resistance bonus (Small)]**

"That's why my normal Flame Shot had hardly any effect," Ryou mumbled before something caught his attention. _Wait a minute, Bio-engineered? As in someone created this thing? Who the hell is the crazy son of a bitch that would make this freaking nightmare?!_ The Bow Hero Wondered in equal parts of disbelief, and anger.

_...Somewhere in Faubley, a blond woman sneezed rather violently__…_

He threw another suspicious glance towards the monster, before crouching and cutting a piece of its pink flesh.

**[Bio-Engineered Mithril-Plated Worm Meat Bow - Common - Equipment bonus - Exotic Delicacies Preparation Bonus (Small)]**

_Ohh god is this a joke?!_ There would be no way he was going to cook something as disgusting as the worm, no matter how exotic his weapon seemed to think it was.

"Onii-shama, Quartz found something pretty." The voice came from within the headless body of the monster, and Ryou moved towards it before peeking inside.

"Quartz the hell are you doing in there?"

"Exploring." The answer came slightly muffled.

With a sigh, Ryou went forward twitching every time his foot touched the soft fleshy ground.

_...and I__'m back here again...Not even in my wildest nightmares…_ His thoughts were brought to a halt when he noticed Quartz almost bathed in a pale blue light.

"The heck?" Moving next to the girl he examined the strange find. It almost looked like an alien tumor, if it wasn't for the crystal embed in it, that was giving off the light.

How did I miss this the first time? Bringing out his knife he cut the crystal from its fleshy prison before examining it. It was bigger than his hand, and Ryou could actually feel something from it, a feeling akin to magic. In a few moments, the crystal was absorbed.

**[Bio-Engineered Worm Core Bow - Common- Equipment bonus - + 12 Magic, MP Bonus (Small), Magic Bonus (Small), Charged Shot Skill, Monster Modification Skill Unlocked - Special Effect - Charging Speed Bonus (Medium)]**

_Charged shot huh? It would be awesome if it was similar to that death beam, and a Monster Modification Skill? _"This might have almost made this trip worth it…" Ryou mumbled, deciding to check the new entry in his help menu.

_Well isn't this interesting__…_ The Bow Hero thought as he scrolled through the information.

His new skill let him customize monsters in his Slave Menu, with every monster having a fixed amount of maximum trait points, that could be used to modify them with negative traits giving more points but without surpassing the maximum amount, and positive traits that decreased the amount available. More traits could be unlocked based on the monster's level and items absorbed by his bow.

_This is the kind of system used in some strategy and RPG games where you create a new character or race isn't it..?_ However, Ryou couldn't stop himself from comparing it to genetic manipulation on some level, he did send the small girl a quick glance before immediately banishing any thoughts.

T_here's a line between being a Legendary Hero, and playing god..._

"Can Quartz eat it now?"

Ryou held another sigh but nodded anyway, she had found something that had made the whole battle worth it after all.

"Yay." She cheered rather monotonously.

Slowly making his way outside, his gaze fell on Rishia who stood a couple meters away. The girl biting her lip, clearly wanting to say something but holding back.

"What is it, Rish?" He questioned tiredly.

"Its… It's nothing… I'm just thankful you're alright…" Rishia muttered just above a whisper.

His eyes soften just an inch, and in a couple of steps, he was in front of her, a hand falling on her shoulder, prompting the girl to meet his gaze.

"You know… I might not like it, but I'm the Yumi-no Yuusha, so it would be pretty pathetic, not to mention embarrassing if I met my end to a worm of all the…" He started, almost indifferently, but soon his tongue became tied when the girl caught the hem of his sleeve, and gripped it tightly.

Even as she lowered her head Ryou still caught sight of something glistering in her eyes, and he immediately realized how worried she probably had been after seeing him being swallowed.

_I guess I should have been more thoughtful of her feelings__…_ He watched the top of her head, as her shoulders shook just a fraction, and without even pausing to think, he pulled the girl into a hug. Ryou almost aborted the action when he heard a sharp intake, before she relaxed, and her hands flew to grip the front of his armor.

Shoulders relaxing, the Bow Hero also took a deep breath, before closing his eyes, his head coming to rest on top of the girl's simply enjoying the embrace, as the weight of the entire day crashed on him.

_How long has it been, since I felt like this__… Like I was cherished… Like I was needed..._

"Thanks, Rish…" Ryou whispered gently.

"For what?" She questioned, her tone matching his, trying to understand the sudden bout of gratefulness.

Tightening his hold just a bit before breaking the embrace, his hands still gripped her upper arms.

Looking into her lime green eyes, Ryou shook his head softly, but a small smile did bloom in his face, "Just thank you, for being you…"

_I wonder__…_

His gaze moved towards the dragon that was happily munching on the worm for a moment, before returning to Rishia.

His goal hadn't changed, his other him had mentioned as much, and yet…

_...if this is what Naofumi feels every time he looks at Raphtalia and Filo..._ The feeling of having something he wanted to protect, and make sure no harm came to them.

_My main goal hasn't changed, but it's still my responsibility to guide them, and make sure that all of us make it through this__…_

* * *

By the time they returned it was already dusk and Ryou decided to incite a small rebellion in the kitchen, and liberate it along with the oven for his own usage, even tired beyond belief, his party deserved that much.

Both Rishia and Quartz had retired for the night after dinner, too tired from a full day of fighting, as had Almond, but not before giving Ryou the liberty of assaulting his personal bar.

Now alone in the living room, Ryou swirled his drink, watching the amber liquid lick the sides of the glass.

_Wrath, and Pride__…_ The two curses sleeping inside of him.

_Pride__… When was I ever prideful enough to issue this…_ Ryou wondered, taking another sip. The Bow Hero honestly couldn't remember, a moment were he had been truly prideful, yet if it existed there had to be a reason for it, he just wasn't seeing it.

After another sip, he focused his thoughts on another issue. His other personalities seemed sure he would call upon that power eventually, and Ryou didn't even bother to refute it. He knew how screwed up his new world was, so it would almost be a given that he would call upon it.

_Naofumi came out relatively unscathed__… _

Once more try as he might he couldn't wrap his head around the warning. He remembered the backlash Naofumi received, with him bleeding enough to form a pond, and yet his red-eyed twin dismissed it as almost superficial damage.

_If he calls that unscathed, then what exactly will happen to me? _Whatever the price, it would be something terrifying.

Rising to his feet, the Bow Hero watched the embers from the fire-place, before a rumbling sound caught his attention. Turning to look at the closest window, he saw the rain falling just beyond the glass boundary, and he took a few steps towards it.

"This knowledge that I have is my biggest advantage, so why would I want to mess with it?" Ryou uttered out loud but to no-one.

So far things appeared to be going as they should for the most part with a few changes, but even those hardly affected anything that he could see. The fact that Naofumi had another party member marked something new, but he could only see that as something very positive for his fellow hero.

His other personalities or whatever they were, however, seemed to think that maintaining the normal time-line would be the wrong way to go about it.

_They knew far more than they let on, or maybe they just reached a conclusion that I just can't see__…_

The Bow Hero tried to think about it, yet is thoughts once more came back to his fellow heroes. He already had Naofumi's situation mostly sorted out, in a way that would put both him and the Shield Hero in a better position than he had been previously.

_Am I supposed to try and reach out to the other two?_ Ryou questioned amused, watching the pitter-patter. He did acknowledge to having a better relationship with the other two than Naofumi, and maybe they would believe him if he were to tell them about the strengthening methods.

"But that hardly solves the main problem..." He considered. Once more he raised the glass to his lips, grimacing slightly at the taste.

There were lots of problems with the other two heroes, but one of their worst flaws had to be their over-sized ego. Their Status as Heroes and the power they wielded had already gone too their heads, so giving them any more power, would only make them even more arrogant and prone to cause trouble. Worse still it would make them even less manageable, should the situation take a turn for the worse.

_...and even if I decide to ignore all those facts, before long we will be back to square one because the strengthening methods will not be enough... _That had been the reason behind Naofumi searching for other ways to get stronger, outside of the system - ways that the other heroes completely disregarded, for having to put any effort or for thinking they knew better.

Out of the two Heroes, Ren would be the one more inclined to listen but not by much. Ryou remembered that the youngest of the four heroes did appear to feel some degree of responsibility towards the dragon incident, but on the other hand, he also remembered a specific situation during the third wave where Naofumi had called both him and Motoyasu out on thinking in game terms, and the Sword Hero acknowledging it, before falling back on it not even two seconds later.

_What's up with that logic? Agreeing you shouldn__'t think about reality as a game, and a moment later claiming that killing the Skeleton Pirate is the only way to end the wave… How about stopping for a moment and thinking outside of the box? _Ryou mused with a snort.

Trying to reach out to Motoyasu would be an exercise doomed to failure, considering that Malty had his ear, and whatever the princess said might as well be a command from the heavens.

_It's not like I can just go and ask Malty to play nice, and be just a tiny bit smarter__…_ The girl had been more than ready to put her baby sister under the ground just for a shot at the throne. There existed the possibility of removing the red-haired young woman from the equation, and that might make the Spear Hero more inclined to listen, but Ryou couldn't think of a feasible way to make it work in the near future.

_Unless I can somehow convince both Naofumi and Mirellia to imprison her for life, or at least until the waves end... _Ryou scratched his chin as he considered it. The idea did have merit. Convincing Naofumi wouldn't be particularly hard, the Shield Hero held nothing but contempt for the first princess, and not having to deal with her, would be nothing short of a heavenly blessing for the hero. Her Majesty would be harder to persuade, but imprisonment would still be better than outright execution.

Ryou grinned as he considered the idea. Not only would the idea make the Spear Hero put some more effort into defeating the waves, if he wanted to save his beloved princess, but it would remove one of the biggest obstacles against getting him to listen out of their way. There were still the other girl's in his party, besides Rino who was the only one that appeared to have a good head on her shoulders, but they weren't princesses and coercing them into being team players would be easier._ Especially if the ring leader ends up in chains..._

_Definitely something to consider, but that's further down the line, so, for now, where exactly does that leave me as far as the Status quo is concerned? _

One other thing that crossed his mind would be dealing with the Pope before he could retrieve the replicated legendary weapon. It would be something he might be able to pull off relatively soon with the rate he and his party were progressing, but once more that would be a stupid decision.

_For one the moment I give Naofumi the secret behind unlocking the Strengthening Methods, the Pope won__'t even be an issue, especially if I'm there with him, not only that, the man did put a lot of his followers if not all of them in one spot for Mirellia to swoop in and take them out... _Stopping that particular event from happening could lead to disaster with a lot of members threading on fanaticism. The death of their Messiah could push the remaining members over the edge, and he didn't fancy the idea of having to deal with terrorism inside Melromarc.

_Not counting that, there's also Glass and company__…_ But once more there wasn't really anything to do on that front. As terrifying as Glass appeared to be, the woman was far from invincible, the same could be said for L'Arc and his companion, whose name Ryou couldn't remember if his life depended on it.

If there existed one thing that he did not have a solution for, it would be the thing that would come after, and what marked the end of his foreknowledge.

"The freaking Spirit Turtle…" Ryou uttered.

The creature that would herald untold amounts of destruction, and death everywhere it went. The one event, that the Bow Hero wanted to change at all costs.

Finishing his drink, Ryou returned to his seat on the couch, trying to put together what he knew about the creature. "It was sealed by a hero, or heroes a long time ago. It's big enough to carry a mountain on its back, can survive being beheaded, can summon an army of familiars, along with a human version of it that asked Naofumi to kill its master for some reason... And if I follow Naofumi's reasoning along with the mythology from my own world, then there will be three other equally nice heavenly beasts somewhere, but I can leave that for later…" Ryou considered out loud.

He still believed the other heroes had been responsible for releasing the monster. After taking so many blows to their ego, it would be almost certain that they would once more try to use their knowledge to get the upper hand. However, the fact that they only moved after the familiars started appearing, had been the one factor putting some measure of doubt in his theory.

_The seal could have been located somewhere else... Maybe they went there, broke it, and booked it towards where they knew it would awaken, while daydreaming on all the praise they would receive for putting down such beast__…_ Ryou considered, but the idea even if plausible still sounded like a bit of a stretch in his mind.

_But even if they weren't responsible for breaking the seal, they still knew about it and hid it from Mirellia, and Naofumi... But then again, that's something that I fully intend to change when the time comes... _ He fully intended to release everything he knew about the creature to his fellow hero, and maybe between them they could stop the Spirit Turtle from awakening, or at the very least kick start the evacuation of the surrounding countries.

"Still, I'm missing way too much information about that thing…" He murmured, leaning back on the couch, and closing his eyes in contemplation.

_Rishia knew something about it so there's that... Fitoria also knows, but I don't know any way to contact her, besides releasing a T-Rex into the world, and I don't think she'll take a liking to Quartz..._ While he doubted that the Filorial Queen would outright attack his party member, he couldn't discount the possibility of it happening, and if it did, Ryou knew he would try his best to protect Quartz, but the most likely outcome would be both of their deaths.

_Guess we should make a trip to Reiki when we have the time, even if we don't find anything of value, I can still mark it as a teleport location, and get there before those idiots do, and if they are truly responsible for awakening the Spirit Turtle.._. Ryou paused opening his eyes halfway,

_...The only thing I can do as the Shield Hero is defend.._. Those had been Naofumi's words, and although they had come from a made-up character, he had no doubt its real counterpart shared those same feelings. Ryou knew he couldn't defend people, not like the Shield Hero could, but there was one thing he could do that his fellow hero couldn't.

"If words and honest feelings can't reach them, then maybe I can engrave some common sense through other means..."

He couldn't defend as Naofumi could, but he sure as hell could attack, and when the time came... If Ren and Motoyasu thought that their selfishness was worth more than hundreds if not thousands of lives, they would have another thing coming...

* * *

_Next Chapter - Advancements and New Ripples_


	28. Advancements and New Ripples

**A/N - **Hi guys here we are again with a new chapter, since I have a little bit of ranting to do, along with a change in schedule I'll leave the rest of this author's note on the bottom for those interested, with that said here we go.

Where Ryou delves deeply into the history of his new world, makes some groundbreaking discoveries, and meets and new yet old face...

* * *

**Chapter 28 - Braving Into a New World: Advancement and New Ripples**

The following morning Ryou decided to question his partner about the Heavenly Beast that plagued his thoughts the previous night. As expected, it had taken most of the morning for Rishia to find the book that spoke about the Spirit Turtle in her attic. Unfortunately, the book itself offered nothing new in terms of information.

Ryou did felt a small degree of guilt, when he had been forced to deflect the questions his partner sent his way, about his interest in such a creature. While he did trust Rishia more than anyone else, he knew how honest the girl was, and he couldn't risk for her to blurt out something incriminating to her demi-human friend. Not only that but it would be cruel to burden her with the knowledge of what would be coming their way, and forbidding her from acting on it - such a thing would go against her values and would only hurt her.

_No__… This guilt is my burden to bear…_ The Bow Hero had decided because that too was his duty both as a party leader and as the Yumi-no Yuusha.

Ryou did spend most of the day with the green-haired girl, trying to find other mentions of the Heavenly Beast much to his youngest party member chagrin, that found the whole affair boring beyond belief. Although he couldn't read much, he could still understand some of the more simple and basic concepts on what most books were about, those written in Melromarc's language that was.

While Quartz did indeed found the whole thing pointless, Ryou, however, did not, but not for good reasons. As dusk fell, the Bow Hero found himself at wit's end with the information he had been able to acquire or lack off.

Fabluey had an amazing curriculum. For instance, if one wanted to know about the theory behind various fields of Alchemy, the information would be there, or if one wanted to know the inner workings of Magic, it would be easy to find. However, that was all the books had, theory on theory, with no real-life applications at all. Even history books were much the same.

He had been able to confirm that all the hype behind the Sage King of Melromarc rang true. With his amazing strategies and ploys he had been able to bring an end to Siltveld world conquest ambitions, along with the almost extinction of a type of Demi-humans called the Hakuko, but when Ryou tried to find what those strategies were, or how he had implemented them, he found nothing.

He did however found a plethora of information on the nation that hailed Naofumi as their god. Siltvelt ruling body during the war had been compromised by four noble races, and Ryou had been able to draw parallels between them, and the four heavenly beasts. On more present times, those four races had been cut in half, with the Hakuko fall from grace courtesy of Aultcray ravaging their numbers. The other noble race missing, were the Aotatsu having left Siltvelt since rather than believing in the Church of the Shield Hero, they were firm believers in their own religion.

_Dragon Faith__…_ Ryou's eyes had went to Quartz at the mention of that religion in particular, and the small girl had showed some passing interest in the Half-dragon race. According to Rishia they seemed to worship some kind of heavenly dragon - one that stood above all others.

Ryou for some reason picture an entire cult of half-dragon Demi-human's hailing his party member as their god, before chortling in amusement. Quartz could be considered a lot of things, and indeed her white coloring could point towards a more heavenly background, but he seriously doubt it.

_The only thing godly about her is how much she eats__…_ The Bow Hero had concluded in amusement.

The idea of maybe sending an hint to Naofumi so he would visit that country in order gain their support, and for the Shield Hero to have a breath of fresh air from Melromarc did passed his mind, however it had been Rishia's father that assured him, it would be a very bad idea. For one the Noble concluded it would start a war, perhaps not on Naofumi's part, but Aultcray would surely move.

If a war indeed broke out, Ryou knew by heart what side he would pick, and that would make the entire thing very awkward, not to mention difficult for him since the Northern Territories were still in fact under Melromarc's rule.

But the worst part came when Almond told Ryou of the fate that had befallen upon the last Shield Hero summoned by Siltvelt. The man had been nothing but a prisoner according to the rumors, a prisoner in a gilded cage, but a prisoner nonetheless. Used as nothing more then breeding stock before dying from a mysterious illness.

_Sure for the average joe having a harem throwing themselves at them would be a dream come true but I don__'t think Naofumi will find the notion nearly as appealing…_ Also if the afterlife existed he had no doubt that the Shield Hero would find some way to come back from the dead just to haunt him as a vengeful spirit.

_...and if someone can hold a grudge, Naofumi sure can__…_ Ryou had considered with a shudder, much to Almond's secret amusement.

Faubley had also, according to Rishia deep historic ties with the Heroes, Legendary, and Vassal. The country that possessed the biggest Military power in the world, and boasted having access to the majority of the Vassal Heroes, though some of them liked to operate outside of the area, but would still come if Fabuley asked for them. But even information about those heroes appeared nonexistent. Such prominent figures should be mentioned everywhere, especially if they were their countries pride, but no. The only piece of information that Ryou had been able to acquire from the books, had been the identity of the Seven Vassal Weapons, but that had been all, no names of their wielders, not even a physical description, or image. Once more it had been his partner that came through, and gave him something more to think about…

_Faubley__'s Whip Vassal Hero…_

Rishia had only heard passing information about the man. For one he had been some kind of genius prodigy that had somehow reversed engineered information left behind by the previous Legendary Heroes. If the previous Heroes had also been summoned from worlds like his, then it explained why Faubley had access to cars and other more advanced technologies.

Besides that, the Whip Vassal Hero also appeared to have a hobby of raising monsters into powerful allies. Ryou did found some degree of amusement when Rishia had mentioned that piece of information, because the first thing that had pop in his mind, had been one of a man taming a lion on a circus with a whip.

_Maybe the Whip as abilities similar to Grow Correction__… _The Bow Hero had considered, but it was at most speculation on his part because once more there existed no information to be found on the power behind the Vassal Weapons or the Legendary Ones for that matter.

_Maybe when things calm down, I__'ll ask Mirellia to propose a meeting. If the guy can turn the theory behind cars into the real thing, then I would love to trade notes, and he does seem to be more proactive than another Vassal Hero that I know about…_

The next day, the party had made their way to the Blacksmith in Gentlewood, and after a few negotiations, Ryou had been able to hammer out a deal. In exchange for selling the surplus of Mithril at a discount price, the man would take the Bow Hero as an honorary disciple. Regrettably, that meant that his party would have to delve once more into the depths, but after a full day of rest, and with a clearer mind, Ryou did admit he couldn't avoid such a good leveling place, and so began his lessons in the art of blacksmithing.

During the next days, the party would divide itself in the morning, with Ryou taking his lessons, Rishia dividing her time between sparing with the Guards, and working on her magic, and Quartz doing what she did best, and work towards her goal of devouring any living being in the area around Northern Village, though Ryou did make the Dragon promise she would work on her non-existent flight capabilities. In the afternoon they would come together to level up in the Northern Cavern, or if Ryou's lessons happen to last longer, the girls would go alone, though he asked they keep themselves to the upper levels, least another worm appeared.

His non-official game plan would be to stay in the Northern Territories until Rishia came close to her class-up, though with the progress they were making it would be a matter of days. After that, they would make for Zetouble. The mercenary country had a Dragon Hourglass of their own, so they could get Rishia's Class-up Ceremony there, and away from the eyes of the Church of the Three Heroes.

It was during one of those trips that Ryou decided to try his new bow and the offensive ability that came with it. The target… A Cave Stalker, the official name behind the Eldritch Pigs, a creature mostly passive unless provoked, and the perfect target.

With a flick of his wrist, his new bow came into existence. Pure black, with the grip made out of the same crystal he had absorbed.

"Charged Shot." Muttering the name of the skill, he pulled an arrow made completely of pure blue light. A moment later light blue particles escaped from his body, merging with the arrow. Ryou noted that unlike all of his skills, the Charged Shot, was indeed a charging ability, but unlike the rest of his skills that only use SP for activation, the charging process came from his MP pool. Another thing he definitely felt, was the wave of weakness that hit him, the moment his MP Pool hit zero, never having reach that low before.

With the charging process complete, Ryou muttered a silent apology to Rishia who used magic practically every day. In his shaking grip was now a blue bolt similar in size to the ones from his ballista, arcs of almost ethereal light escaping it.

At last, he released the projectile, and the bolt shot forward leaving a blinding trail, and what followed next completely bypassed his perception. One moment the Cave Stalker was digging into the ground with its tentacles, the next, gone, only part of his legs remained, smoking. The arrow continued down the tunnel for a few seconds before the cavern shock, with light bathing everything.

The moment things calmed down, his knees buckled no longer able to support him, and the only reason his face was not introduced to the floor, was thanks to the green-haired blur that caught him by the shoulder.

"Fuee, Ryou are you alright?" The girl asked, her face etched in worry, angling herself to look at his face.

Ryou sent her a tired smile, "I'm fine Rish, that just took a lot out of me."

"Are you sure?" Ryou nodded and raised a shaky hand before nudging her forehead lightly.

"Yeah, I'm sure, I don't need you to go all mother hen on me of all people." He admonished lightly.

Rishia bit her lip, her face morphing into a frown. "Fuee... Someone as too… If I don't, then who will?"

He really didn't have a response to that, he had asked for a partner, and part of that role was both worrying, and call each other out when needed, and Ryou did both of them in spades.

"Fair enough, but honestly Rish I'm fine. I just wasn't aware, that depleting your magic had such an effect." He reasoned, making the girl's eyes widen in recognition.

"Haaa! So that's why it felt so familiar, that skill was magic based!" She exclaimed, almost dropping him, which earned her a slightly annoyed look.

"Yeah well... It's like a weird hybrid skill that uses magic to power up.", he explained before popping the lid of a Dragon Bless Magic-Recovery Potion and drinking it. Immediately he felt his strength return.

"Well, time to go see what kind of destruction I have caused." Ryou quipped, throwing an amused glance at Quartz who kicked one of the tentacles.

Walking for nearly minute, Ryou reached ground-zero, and a grin spread across his face at the beautiful sight. Where the tunnel once made a nearly ninety-degree curve, there was now a new opening, large enough for Quartz in her dragon form to walk through, the rock walls melted by his new skill.

_It seems I have a finisher._ The main problem would be the charging time, even if his new bow boosted it, it still took a few moments to reach maximum charge. It also had a few more downsides, but overall if it connected it would cause some serious damage.

With his new offensive skill tested, the Bow Hero had then explored his monster modification skill, something that brought an interesting discovery. His modifications couldn't be applied on Quartz. He would never consider such a thing, but more importantly, had been the reason behind it. The girl's Slave Seal had disappeared, leaving her as a normal party member. While the reason behind such an event spiked Ryou's curiosity, it wasn't something that particularly bothered him, especially since for a dragon, Quartz was for the most part very well behaved.

The thought of adding more monsters to his party had been a tempting one, but his dragon by herself ate enough to feed an army, so at the current point Ryou simply did not have in any way shape or form the resources to support such an endeavor, but it would be another idea to consider down the line.

* * *

On a particular night in the comfort of the Ivyred's living room, Ryou decided that he had accumulated enough skill points from his passive tree, and it was time to spend them, finally being able to claim the first cluster truly dedicated to empowering his party members.

_This was not here before__…_ Ryou thought as he took in the new addition to his skill tree. Where once stood the four Legendary Heroes starting points, along with six other empty icons, now all of them were filled with shining images, images that Ryou recognized almost instantly.

"Rish… The Seven Vassal Weapons are based on the legend of the Seven Star Heroes, right?" Ryou asked.

The Bow Hero's voice grabbed the girl's attention who was deeply immersed in some book. Raising her head she looked towards the Bow Hero, the shift bringing an annoyed mumble from the smaller girl whose head was on Rishia's lap, content on just sleeping.

"Yes, we talk about it before, why?" She questioned confused.

Ryou clicked his tongue leaning back, "Yeah… I think that legend might be slightly wrong…"

"Wrong?" Almond asked, from his spot on his chair, "With all due respect Ryou-sama, the legend of the Seven Star Heroes is over a hundred years old, and there are accounts of all the Seven Heroes, so in which manner do you think it's wrong?"

Sending a side glance to the Noble, Ryou got up, "I think the number of heroes is what's wrong…" He explained, making his way towards the couch, and taking a seat near Rishia, "Take a look at this Rish." He finished pointing to his Skill Tree.

The girl squinted her eyes, trying to find exactly what the Bow Hero was pointing out, as they widened a moment later, "Haaa those are the vassal weapons aren't they?"

Ryou nodded, crossing his arms, "Yeah, besides the four Legendary Weapons, the seven you mentioned are here… Cane or a Staff or whatever it is from Aultcray, the Gauntlets, the Claw from the Vassal Hero of Siltvelt, along with the Hammer, the Axe, the Whip from that guy in Faubley, and this small knife is most likely the Projectile Weapon… But if we take into account this wagon thing, then it makes eight."

Rishia bit her lip lightly, "Didn't we agree that it was a carriage?"

"My daughter a carriage would make for a very strange vassal weapon. Who would even use such a thing?" Almond questioned with a trace of amusement.

"Stupid Birds…" Quartz mumbled from her place in Rishia's lap.

"A Filorial?" Rishia asked out-loud.

Almond chuckled, "A filorial wielding a Vassal Weapon, that would be a sight to see…"

Ryou's shoulders tensed, as his eyes narrowed," A sight to see indeed…"

_That little..! No wonder she__'s so overwhelmingly strong..._ It made sense, as everything connected in Ryou's mind. Besides being alive for hundreds of years, she also wielded a Vassal Weapon to add to her strength.

_I never thought about it before, but her Carriage could conveniently Teleport, and as far as I'm aware the only weapons capable of such an ability are the hero's ones, so it was there for me to see__… But why did she not mention that fact?_

"If it's like Ryou's, maybe it can change into a War Chariot..." Rishia continued, looking towards the ceiling trying to imagine it.

"Still, how would you even fight with it?" Almond asked skeptically.

"It could have spikes on the front and it could Ram monsters with it… Maybe…" The Mage of the party proposed uncertain.

_Wonder if it can copy stuff like mine?_ Ryou considered. Faubley had cars, so tanks weren't exactly that far out.

_A Small Loli girl driving a tank, wasn__'t there an anime that went like that?_ The Bow Hero closed his eyes trying to pictured Fitoria driving a Tank, releasing an ugly snort as the image appeared in his head.

"Fuee... What?"

Ryou shook his head, chuckling, "Nothing… Just Imagining a Filorial driving one of those cars in Faubley…"

_...and then the Tank could morph into a Giant Robot..?_ The image of Fitoria driving a bipedal, nuclear-capable robot, finally broke it for Ryou, who released a short laugh full of mirth.

"Eight Vassal Heroes, instead of Seven, hmm... I think if there were eight they would have been known by now…" Almond reasoned.

"What about the Legendary Filorial Queen..? She is very rarely seen by humans, so it could be possible…" Rishia proposed.

Ryou released an inaudible sound of approval, impressed that his partner without even having access to much information, had been able to hit the bullseye.

Almond shook his head, leaning back on his chair once more, "My daughter, the Legendary Filorial Queen is a myth, nothing more…"

"But father… Wasn't Ryou also just a myth a couple of months ago?" The green-haired girl countered, making the noble choke on his drink.

"She's got you there Lord Almond…" Ryou snickered.

"Well yes… But still, I have a hard time accepting that such a famous legend was wrong…" Almond refused in a mumble.

Ryou hummed, "Perhaps not wrong, rather if this Filorial Queen was raised by a hero then she may be like Quartz, " He took a glance at the small girl, petting her head and receiving a sound of appreciation in return, " ...and she might have stayed hidden from humans since she's still a monster…"

_Besides from what I remember, Fitoria doesn__'t seem to be particularly fond of humanity, not that I can blame her…_

Pine-green filled his vision, as Rishia leaned over to get a clearer vision of his Status Window, once more receiving an annoyed moan from the girl on her lap that was completely ignored, "I wonder… Maybe this means you can help the Vassal Heroes get stronger, with those upgrade methods I mean..." She proposed.

"Maybe if I share it with them…" Ryou trailed off.

_Share__… Could it be..? _The Bow Hero didn't have any information on the abilities of the vassal weapons, but it would be plausible that they had their own abilities and ways of powering up.

"Lord Almond, have you ever heard any rumors, on how Aultcray strengthens his Cane or of any abilities it might have?" Ryou asked eagerly and seeing the Nobles confused frown, he went into detail, "For example, my legendary Bow lets me absorb materials, to unlock new forms, or make a copy of existent Bows."

Almond scratched his chin, "No, I have never heard of such a thing, but then again he did spend most of his time during the war behind the front lines acting as General, although…" Almond explained, trailing off, as his eyes glazed slightly, "...the few mentions that I remember when he did engage in battle were that he used magic for the most part, some that were never recorded, but it was said that he could turn even the weakest of spells into a devastating weapon…"

"Staffs and canes are mostly used to focus magic, so maybe his Majesty's ability is based on that… Maybe he can even change it to a wand?"

Ryou's eyes fell on his partner's hair once more, who had apparently forgotten what personal-space meant since she was almost seated on his lap. _A wand?_ His hand raised to scratch the pale scar in the middle of his forehead, the only visible reminder of his first encounter with a speeding car, one that had landed him on a hospital rather than in another world.

_Although I'm the one with the scar, Naofumi would be the one on the receiving end for sure__… Well that aside, if it exists it might be a strengthening Method that works based on empowering one's magic or something along those lines…_ Ryou mused, as he closed his eyes and tried to will such a system into being.

A few seconds later he opened his eyes to see no new pop-ups in his Status Window.

Releasing a sigh, he leaned back once more, "Guess it would be too much to ask if just a hunch unlocked it…"

"Perhaps you could ask his Majesty personally, he might tell you, you're one of the Heroes protecting Melromarc aren't you…" Rishia offered, but before Ryou could address the idea, Almond interrupted him with a harsh snort.

"I don't think he will… Giving me back my authority even for a good cause didn't earn you any favors from him, and if he went out of his way to give you a clear warning for defending the Tate-no Yuusha, then I don't think Aultcray will be very forthcoming with information, Legendary Hero or not…" Her father noted, his words making her shoulders drop slightly.

A hand landed on her shoulder gently, prompting her to look at the owner. "It's not a bad idea… I mean sure he and I will probably never see eye to eye, and he might not be my greatest fan, but it's not like I will lose anything by asking, and if there's even a one percent chance of him giving me that information, I say it's worth the shot…" Ryou said.

"Fuueee! R-Right!" Rishia exclaimed moving backwards, as she realized the compromising position she had been in.

_That being said I should also run this by Naofumi later. Fitoria did have a soft spot for him, although I'm betting she'll say something among the lines of, 'Only when the Four of you stand together will I help you'..._

"Onii-shama isn't food… snore…" Quartz grumbled in her sleep.

_Three guesses on what she's dreaming about...While the sentiment behind it is nice, I really didn't need a reminder__…_ Ryou thought dryly shaking his head, "Rish, Zetouble is also under the protection of a Vassal Hero isn't it?"

"Y-Yes it is…" She stammered, still embarrassed.

"Good, might as well try that one too since we're going there anyway…" Ryou added.

"Fuee... You're already becoming very strong... If it keeps up…" She trailed off looking down, her previous embarrassment forgotten.

"My daughter, you seemed to be belittling your own progress, and accomplishments again. " Almond chided lightly, a small frown appearing in his face, "Ryou-sama as offered nothing but glowing praise every time we speak of your progress in his party."

The Bow Hero looked to the side and scratched his neck, determined to not meet the girls eyes as she turned them towards him for a moment.

The noble cleared his throat gaining her attention once more, "Besides from what I gathered, you are close to reaching your class-up are you not? Such progress is astonishing, even if your in a Hero's party."

_Is it really?_ Ryou wondered. He knew that just by being in a Hero's party, one would benefit from it, but from the way Almond had stated it, it sounded like something truly amazing by the world's standards.

"How long does it normally take to reach level forty?" Ryou asked in curiosity.

"It varies a little, but the average is between one and two years if you devote yourself to it…"

Ryou's eyes widen at the information, Isn't that almost threading on being broken? That meant that Rishia had done in little over one month, what took adventurers over a year to achieve.

_...and we only truly dedicated ourselves to level up what? Two weeks? _

Ryou's thoughts were broken by Almond who continued, as he shook his head, "That isn't all, even I can see it every time you spar with the guards… It isn't just speed or strength. In little over a week, you went from matching one of them to being easily able to spar with all four at the same time... My daughter, have you ever stop to consider how many years it took those men to reach that level of aptitude in swordsmanship?" Almond finished expectantly.

Rishia for her part lowered her head again at the praise but shock it.

Once more the noble chuckled, "I still remember reading the reports from your college when it came to physical activities… Honestly even I was slightly embarrassed at some of the things your teachers wrote…"

"Fuueeeeeee! Father!" She cried out, her head shooting up, as red took over her complexion.

"Cough… Sounds about right…" Ryou mumbled in his fist, as he remembered exactly how clumsy Rishia's first attempts at fighting Balloons were. The Bow hero did laugh when he felt a light shove on his shoulder.

"Onii-shama is being mean to Onee-shama again…" Quartz mumbled from her spot.

"Seeing you daily fills me with pride, and further proves that letting you join Ryou-sama's party was indeed the correct decision." Almond finished with a smile, one that Ryou found himself matching.

_You really are blessed to have a father like Almond, Rish__…_ Ryou acknowledged, sending his partner a side glance. The girl still looked fairly flushed, but the small smile on her face, told Ryou everything he needed to know about how she felt.

Reaching out he poked her in the shoulder getting her attention, "Besides all this talk about me becoming stronger is mostly stupid anyway. For one we are working on the assumption that the Vassal Weapons have a system that can even be shared, which might not be true, it might just be a case where we Legendary Heroes can gift them with part of our power. And you should know by now that if at any point I think you're being left behind, I'll find a way to make you stronger, so don't needlessly worry about that kind of stuff." Ryou finished.

"You already do... Everyday…" The words were out of her mouth before she realized she had spoken, but thankfully she was spared further embarrassment when it became apparent the Bow Hero hadn't heard her.

"Onee-shama is being weird."

Ryou took a side glance to the small girl, moving his eyes to Rishia in confusion as the girl waved her hands in the air before shrugging. Leaning back, the Boe Hero's expression turned slightly serious. "All jokes aside, there is one thing no one is considering…"

"What's that Ryou-sama?"

The Bow Hero released a heavy breath, "If it's possible for the Legendary, and Vassal Heroes to share powers, then… Just how nightmarish of a situation would require such a colossal amount of power to face…"

"That is a very scary scenario, one that I can't even imagine…" Almond admitted.

"Fueee... Me neither…" Rishia added, her voice low.

The Bow Hero offered only silence, for he too didn't dared to imagine such a terrifying situation.

* * *

There were a lot of things that picked the Bow Hero's curiosity in his new world, most of them revolving around all things magic. Even blacksmith needed a touch of magic, both for crafting and for enhancing the items, as such, Ryou had redoubled his efforts to learn how to correctly manipulate his own magic potential.

There were also a few things that triggered Ryou's suspicion. Something he had taken to heart from his fellow hero harsher outlook on life, had been a healthy measure of paranoia. Naofumi knew that the world, or at least Melromarc was out to get him, and one should always be looking over their shoulder.

The first time he had seen it, he had dismissed it as normal, the second time it had picked his curiosity, now seeing it again, once more after his blacksmith lessons made him slightly suspicious.

It wasn't the convoy of wagons that made its way into Gentlewood's village through the main gate that bothered him. No… Even if Gentlewood could be considered a village in the middle of nowhere, it still bordered with Faubley so such scenarios were common.

It also hadn't been the fact that the wagons were covered, concealing what was inside, that triggered something in him, after all a lot of traders liked to hide their merchandise from view, and from those that might have been entertaining the idea of liberating it.

No… What slightly aroused his suspicion was the man riding in the middle one. While he couldn't see the man's eyes, he recognized the clothes, along with the top hat, and the unnerving grin present on his face.

_Just what are you doing so far away from Castle Town? _

Bending at the knees, Ryou waited for the right moment before jumping. two seconds later he landed effortlessly right next to the man taking a seat.

The man in question turned to him with a lifted eyebrow, and Ryou responded with an equal one. "So what is a slave trader doing all the way out here?"

"Monster trader! I'm only an honest monster trader, who only sells monsters, yes?" The man interjected stressing the word monster.

"Sure you are…" Sarcasm could be cut with a knife, yet it seemed to please the man who's grin returned in full force.

"I heard you have acquired quite a unique specimen yes?"

At the words, Ryou's frown became even more pronounced. "How do you know about that?"

"News do travel fast, especially concerning you Heroes."

"Bullshit! It takes two weeks to get from here to Castle Town, and she hatched a week and a half ago, so try again…" Ryou demanded.

The Slave Trader shrugged, "Merchants talk... While most Crystal Balls are owned and controlled by the crown, and by the Church, there are still a few that are free for the most part."

_Crystal Balls?_ "So what..? You guys just grab a Crystal Ball, and make a Magic-Skype video call? Is that it?"

"I don't understand what you mean Yuusha-sama." Beloukas admitted looking confused, and Ryou shook his head.

"Nothing… Just... You just answered one of the biggest questions, I've had since I stepped on this world…" _Particularly how that psycho Maid got in touch with Mirellia so fast when she is literally half a continent away__…_

The man coughed, his grin becoming visible once again after a moment, "Yes… Like I was saying news travel fast concerning you Heroes, and I always need to be on top of them if I am to acquire, let's say the best possible merchandise."

Ryou glared at the man, immediately understanding what he was implying. "You really are a sorry excuse for a human being, and if it didn't get me in a ton of trouble, just know I would take a lot of pleasure beating the hell out of you."

However, the threat had a strange effect on the man, because instead of feeling intimidated or offended his grin widened as he clutched his chest. "Ahh! I knew you had the right kind of stuff, and it warms my heart that tales of your brutality are true!"

Ryou's mouth opened slightly at the accusation. "What?"

The merchant nodded to himself, before continuing, "Yes, yes even I have heard of how the Yumi no Yuusha-sama enforces his will on other people through violence, the true mark of a slave master, no?"

Ryou could only gawk, at the absurd thing he was hearing, his mind trying to catch up with it.

The slave trader wasn't done though, "Not only that, but you are also a man of more carnal pleasures, not only are you not afraid of showing your intimate side in public, but you also have night rendezvous in the forest with more professional expertise! Such a man who knows the value of the finer things in life, and is not afraid of getting them through any means is surely a good potential customer, no?"

With every statement, Ryou felt like he was being punched in the stomach until finally, he was almost crouching, his face hidden in his hands.

_I don't know who is spreading these rumors, but I will find you, and I will murder you! _The bow hero vowed.

"Just so you know I'm not really interested in any merchandise you have…" Ryou declared after a moment, face still hidden.

"But… But you have such an amazing gift! Such a thing is precisely what I would want to see in a dear customer!" It almost sounded like the man was whining.

"I threaten to beat you to within an inch of your life, and you act like a schoolgirl in love… Are you into S&M? Is that it? Is this some kind of weird foreplay I'm not getting?" Ryou had to ask, and the man thankfully looked just as confused as he was currently feeling.

"I don't understand what you are saying Yuusha-sama."

"Good because I don't either." The Bow Hero brushed off, "...but seriously, just what are you doing all the way out here ?" Ryou questioned yet again, and the man shifted a little before climbing down from the carriage, that had stopped near a structure that could only be identified as a warehouse.

"I had to get a new shipping of merchandise. The exploits of your fellow Hero and his lovely companion have made my stock pummel." The man continued walking towards the warehouse, as Ryou fell in step." I have been traveling around the land to replenish… Are you sure you're not interested?" The man stopped at the door and even wiggled his eyebrows much to Ryou's disgruntlement.

Against his better judgment, the Bow Hero did decide to take a moment to consider it. He still had quite a lot of time until the wave, so if he was to get new members, now would be the perfect time, yet...

"_Are you merciful enough to extend your hand to a slave on the brink of death?"_

_Dammit, Raphtalia, you and your inspirational speeches__…_ Ryou cursed without any heat.

"Against my better judgment, and at the risk of your own health I'll see what you have to sell." Ryou declared, a hand pressed against his forehead glaring at the man that if anything looked like he had just won the lottery.

"I knew you were a reasonable man Yuusha-sama." Beloukas praised motioning for him to enter.

"You are the last person I want to hear that from…"

Upon entering the warehouse, Ryou was assaulted by a smell not dissimilar from a barn, only worse. Surveying the dimly lighted area, he could see cages stacked on top of each other, with demi-humans, and other different inhabitants of all sizes, shapes, and ages.

_This is so wrong__…_

His thoughts were interrupted at that particular moment by the slave trader in front of him. "So is there anything that you're particularly interested in?"

Ryou had to stop to actually ponder. What was he actually looking for exactly? Rishia, had the middle range covered, Quartz would eventually be able to deal with close quarters, and he could act on all positions if needed.

"I honestly don't know, so surprise me…" Ryou offered, and the man seemed to also ponder for a moment, before snapping his fingers.

"Taking into consideration everything I know about you, I know just the thing, and I just got her recently too! Yes, yes it will be perfect!"

The man walked deeper into the storehouse, a step faster than before and Ryou was left to wonder just how much info did the slave trader actually had on him.

On the back where Ryou would bet were the lowest quality slaves if it followed the same theme as in Castle Town, Beloukas stopped, raising the curtain on one of the cages, the sudden light making the small figure inside disappearing into a corner, curling in on herself.

"This one is sure to suit your tastes, one hundred percent guaranteed!" Ryou sent him a dubious look before peering into the cage. Just as he suspected from the movement it was definitely a child, a demi-human one and from what little he could see it appeared to be a girl.

Ryou straightened himself, sending a suspicious side glare to Beloukas.

"Hey... What exactly were you implying when you said she was perfect for me..?"

The Slave trader took on a confused expression tilting his head to the side, "Well, it's just that like the Tate-no Yuusha, you seem to have a preference for females on the smaller side... That's what my merchant senses told me."

Disgust filled his being, as he exploded "Your merchant senses are utter shit! I certainly don't have those kinds of preferences and neither does Naofu..."

_Master, I'm ready..._

_Master, why did you pick Filo..._

_My name is Melty, not Second Princess..!_

A slapping sound echoed, as his hand met his face in exasperation.

_Goddammit Naofumi, I'm trying to defend your reputation here, but looking back you just have to give off the wrong impression every single time don't you..? The only official member in your party that was actually safe was Rishia and even then she still somewhat looks like a middle schooler.. Well depending on where you're looking at... Heck I can even let Raphtalia slide, even if just a few weeks ago she hardly reach my waist... But somehow I have a feeling you're not going to stop there..._

'_Much further down the line, Ryou would laugh at the irony that would surround not only the Shield Hero, but all four of them…'_

Releasing a sigh, he rubbed his face, "Well like I was saying, Naofumi and I don't have those preferences... There is only one hero that does, and that's the spear one..."

"I see, I see..."Beloukas cackled, rubbing his hands, for what reason Ryou didn't know, nor cared to find out.

Crouching, he tried to make up the small child's features. The first thing that he noted besides her feeble appearance was a pair of ears similar to those of Raphtalia only on a lighter shade of brown instead. Her hair went down to the nape of her neck, and appeared to match the color of her ears, though between being messy, and the faint light it was difficult to tell.

Fearful soft golden eyes met his own, and she shuffled further back into the cage when his eyes narrowed unconsciously fully taking in her appearance. Something about the small Demi-human child screamed of a familiarity that he couldn't pinpoint.

_Hey... Do you remember that flag?_

The memory hit him like the truck that had sent him to this world, and Ryou backed away from the cage spooked, and he opened his mouth voicing his thoughts before he could truly think about it.

"This isn't possible... You're supposed to be dead!"

* * *

**A/N (Cont) - **Okay so to kick off I have some rather bad news to give, and I'm going to get that out of the way, I've decided to switch to a bi-weekly posting schedule for the foreseeable future. There are a multitude of reasons behind it, but the truth is that between work, real-life problems that among other stuff also involve the case were I got hit by a car, and that's apparently now moving to court since the driver in question refuses to discuss anything even when she hit me in the middle of a crosswalk, and going above the speed limit, but she thinks she did nothing wrong and doesn't have to pay either for my medical bills, nor for anything else, (This was mostly what I have been trying to solve this past week), but that's not even counting that I hardly have time to do anything or even just spend time with my family. Up until now I have been able to make it work since I have been working on the buffer of drafts for chapters that I built when I was working less than half the hours I'm working now, but the problem is that I haven't been able to make much progress beyond that, so eventually, I would have hit a wall and would have to go on a long break, so it's also to avoid such a scenario that I'm changing to a By-weekly schedule.

As it stands is simply impossible for me to put out a chapter every week, along with dealing with everything going on, working, and still find time to write future chapters, or even just take a breather, this became even more apparent to me when I realized I go on a week break every time something new comes along. I do apologize to everyone following me, and that as grown used to this schedule, but even I was under the impression that the extension on my working hours would only last until the end of the year, and unfortunately that wasn't the case.

I will say though that I will revert to posting weekly once I have regained my footing, and all of the stuff I have going on gets solved.

**End of rant.**

On a slightly more positive note (Subjective), the next chapter will not be featuring Ryou. While initially, I was going to show what Naofumi was up too in a little scene change, I decided to change it into a full-blown chapter, showing what all the other three heroes were doing, along with what is going on with their parties so you guys can look forward to that, though next chapter will also kick start the second part of this arc, that will take on a darker tone so fair warning given.

Also changes in focus/perspectives will became more prominent going forward as we slowly derail from the original story line, and the actions, and choices of not only Naofumi but also the other heroes and characters become more crucial to the plot.

As side note, I'm still looking for a Beta reader, so if there is anyone interested, feel free to PM me.

* * *

_Next Chapter - Intermission - Collision Course_


	29. Intermission: Collision Course

**A/N-** Hi guys Godreal here with a new chapter, this one is a little bit on the long side, but it covers a multitude of things, along with tons of foreshadowing. As for the rest, things are still a little bit chaotic, but having another week is a breath of fresh air, since I have a little bit more time to just sit down write, and plan. (I do miss the weekly feedback, but it is what it it).

Also a shout-out for reaching one thousand followers, and to Raphtalia who won the best girl award, she definitely had my vote!

Now here we go... Where Malty plans something sickening to deal with a thorn on her side, Ren fails to see what is going on in his party, Naofumi being Naofumi with a new familiar addition to his party, and the wheels of fate start to turn in a different direction...

* * *

**Chapter 29. Intermission: Collision Course**

_"This isn__'t possible... You're supposed to be dead!" _

_A few days later, in Castle Town__…_

Chatter echoed inside the bar, as adventurers, merchants or just the average drunkard talked, yelled and chugged beverages like they were water, however one particular individual tried his very best to mute the chaos around him.

A hand reaching for the mug, the teen brought the beverage to his lips taking a small sip, grimacing almost instantly at the taste.

_Everyone drinks it, and it's not like someone is going to forbid a hero from drinking__…_ The teen thought, watching the timer from his status window trickle down, a couple of minutes to go until his newest weapon would be completed.

Taking his eyes of the status window, they went to the parchment laid on the table in front of him, most of the language lost to him, but there existed no need to understand it, the picture of a creature half-eagle, half-lion made it clear enough.

_Gryphons__…_ The Sword Hero sighed in annoyance. His newest quest required him to hunt the mythical creatures that were terrorizing a village in the southeast, at the border.

_This is going to be a pain__…_ Ren complained mentally, taking another quick sip. While he had no problem dealing with normal gryphons, he didn't know what variant these would be and based on what he remembered from Brave Star Online, there were quite a few of them. Some only used their beaks, or claws to attack as they dived. But others used their feathers as projectiles or even wind magic, refusing to come down from the skies.

He did have a few ranged skills, but most of them had an annoying cool-down something that would make the quest take longer then he would have liked, but the alternative would be to take some of his party members, and that would be a last resort, one not needed for such a simple task.

Heavy thumps echoed above the chatter, along with the squeaking of armor, that had him scowling lightly.

_...Speaking of pain__… Why did I accept him back into my party again?_ The teen questioned in his head, as the heavy footsteps came to a stop right next to him.

Taking a side glance, he took in the imposing figure of the armored knight, along with an equally imposing mustache.

"Gryphons next, is it Ren-sama?" The armored figure commented, scratching his facial hair in contemplation. Behind him two other figures came to a stop, one clocked in a dark hood, half of his face covered by his hair, the other blond, a small cocky grin in his face, as he tapped his shoulder with his spear lightly.

"Yeah...They have been causing some trouble in the south-east and the reward is pretty good…" The teen mumbled lightly, eyes going back to his status window, suddenly wishing the timer went by faster.

"As expected of the Ken-no Yuusha-sama, going out of his way to save another village from monsters!" The armored man exclaimed loudly.

The teen winced slightly at the declaration, one that had no doubt attracted the attention of everyone in the tavern.

_I__'m not doing this for the praise, it's mostly the reward that interests me, and Gryphon's drops aren't all that bad either…_ Ren admitted keeping his thoughts to himself.

With another exhale, he laid his chin in his palm. For some reason he couldn't quite grasp, not that he particularly cared, Mald, and his little group seemed to always be fixated on the idea of acting like superheroes.

_If they spent less time talking about justice and whatnot, and more time leveling up then they might actually be of use__…_

The chair next to his screeched loudly against the stone floor and Ren found himself glaring at the timer once more, growing in intensity when the table clattered violently, as the Armored man took a seat next to him and too close for comfort.

"So our next stop is Ehrenhaft Village is it… I never mentioned it, but I'm quite familiar with the area." Mald mentioned almost casually.

_...Here we go again__…_ Ren released another sigh, as the timer finally reached zero, and without ceremony, he stood up from the table.

"_My next stop_ is Ehrenhaft Village… Gryphons are hardly something I need help with. Actually taking more people would only give them more targets, and just make my job harder than it as to be." The sword Hero said with a tone of finality.

The man's expression contorted into something resembling a grimace, his fists clenching under the table. "Ren-sama, I assure you we wouldn't be a hindrance, my sword skills are second to…" Mald quickly closed his mouth as the sword hero shot him a condescending glare.

"They are at the very least second to one person… And I have the level, and strength to go along with those skills. It doesn't matter how nicely you can swing your sword if you can't deal any damage when it matters..." The teen asserted.

That had been another thing that annoyed him about this particular little group. The rest of his party was more than fine leveling in appropriate areas, but the group in front of him only seemed interested in following him around, an idea that he had no intentions of entertaining. While he would acknowledge he liked the positive attention that came with slaying dangerous monsters, Mald and his group seemed to love bathing in the praise, to a degree even he felt uncomfortable when watching.

"...If any of you want to be by my side on the front-lines, then raise your levels to appropriate standards first…" The teen finished, turning around and walking away.

Silence fell on the table for nearly half a minute, before the Armored knight slammed his fist on it, causing what was left of the Sword Hero's beverage to spill over. "Levels this, levels that… It's like he doesn't care about our skills at all…" Mald muttered in a tone that bordered on venomous.

Releasing a sigh the teen of the group leaned back, "He isn't wrong though, Gryphons are hardly a challenge for him. Say what you want Mald, but Ren-sama is strong. He might be the Hero that will save this world from the waves."

"I have some doubts about that…" Mald muttered, in a hushed tone crossing his arms.

"Huh?" The teen questioned confused, leaning on the table," What do you mean?"

Releasing a breath, Mald also leaned on the table, "I went to speak with the Bishop yesterday, and he told me much, but particularly that his holiness is having second thoughts about the heroes."

"Second thoughts? On what exactly?" The hood figure questioned.

"That…" The armored knight took a moment to collect his thoughts, "...that perhaps we were too hasty in considering them the heroes of legend…"

"Are you saying that his holiness the pope thinks they might be fakes?" The hooded figure asked.

A scoff came from the teen as he leaned back once more, "That's stupid, no matter how you look at it they wield the weapons of legend… There's no denying that."

"Be careful of how you speak, it's his Holiness the pope that is having these doubts!" The armored man hissed, before calming himself, "Besides his worries aren't unfounded… What exactly have these Legendary Heroes been doing?"

"Ren-sama fought and cleared the wave or don't you remember, and there's also the dragon he took out, not that you were present to see it…" The last part brought a glare to Mald's face.

"Fighting in the waves is nothing more than their duty, and the dragon's presence might have been causing trouble for the villagers, but was the safety of our people truly were his heart lay? Because from my point of view it seems he's just hunting strong monsters for sport."

"Might I remind you those monsters are what give him the materials to craft better weapons? And that those weapons give him the strength to fight in the waves?"

"He is strong enough as it is! With his strength why doesn't he act? Is a Hero not meant to be a symbol of justice? Of what's right?!" Mald demanded, slamming his fist once more on the table, gaining a few inquisitive looks.

"If that's how you think, then why didn't you stick with the Yumi-no Yuusha?" The teen scoffed, accepting a mug and downing it in one go before continuing, "Heard he brought down a corrupted Noble up in the North."

"Rumors tend to be greatly exaggerated, and I admit to having put too much stock in them at first." Mald admitted, "But now I know the truth."

"What are you on about now?" The teen asked confused.

Hand going to his face, Mald lowered his head slightly, "I too initially thought that the Yumi-no Yuusha was righteous, but our Bishop enlightened me on the truth behind what happened."

"What truth? Word as it that Lord Gentlewood was corrupt. That he was overtaxing his villagers. Are you saying that is not true?" The hooded figure asked.

"That's exactly what I'm saying. It was all a ploy from his rival, Almond!" He hissed, "That man as no honor! He's an incompetent fool, one that even dares to defend those filthy beasts! He might have a short memory, but the rest of us don't, I still remember how many good men died in that war, and when our Majesty rightfully took away his power, he plotted!"

The hooded man snapped his fingers, his eyes widening in realization, "He spread those rumors of Lord Gentlewood being corrupt…"

Mald nodded, "Yes, and when they spread far and wide he hired the Yumi-no Yuusha-sama to strip Lord Gentlewood of his authority. He even whored his daughter to him, no doubt as payment for his services, and in a bid to acquire himself even more power!"

"Are you sure about that? There are a lot of people saying it was almost impossible to get in Gentlewood Village…" The teen reasoned, prompting a snort out of the armored man.

"That's how far the trash went to smear Lord Gentlewood's reputation. The word from the Bishop is that Lord Gentlwood was a kindred spirit… One that might have applied slightly higher taxes than normal, but he was donating all that money to the church to help the victims of the wave." Mald finished.

The hooded man scowled leaning back, however, the teen still looked somewhat skeptical, "I haven't had much chance to interact with Ryou-sama, but he didn't seem that naive…"

For the third time, Mald's fist hit the table, "Do you know where he is now?!" The armored man demanded, and the teen shook his head, "He's holed up in the Northern Territories, no doubt reaping the benefits of his heroic deeds, and I'm sure his party member is more than happy to spread her legs and oblige. If his so righteous then, why isn't he even in the country that supports him, doing what he is supposed to be doing?! If it's truly corrupt nobles that he likes to hunt, then there is no shortage here. You have trash like Raid, and Reichnott who use semantics to keep those barbaric demi-humans from facing their righteous punishment!"

"Okay, if that's indeed the case, then I can see how his Eminence might be feeling some doubts, but there's still the Yari-no Yuusha-sama, he's still favored, right?" The teen asked accepting another mug.

"Only slightly. Last I heard he helped put an end to famine by giving some poor souls a magic seed, only for the seed to turn into a monster…"

"I heard it was the Shield who put an end to th..!" The hooded figured jumped, as a mug passed near his head, crashing against the wall behind.

"Do not mention that trash in front of me ever again!" Mald snarled with venom, "He has no right calling himself a hero! Employing both a Demi-humans and savage monsters in his party. He even goes around the countryside pillaging every poor traveler he comes across!"

The table fell into silence once more.

"...I still think Ren-sama is a hero you know…" The teen mumbled after Mald had calmed down.

Releasing another breath Mald's shoulders relaxed slightly, "Time will tell if he is one of the heroes of legend or not…"

The hooded man swallowed in dry, "...and if is Holiness fears are real… What then?"

"Then…" Mald's expression turned dark, "...it's our sworn duty to shine some truth upon the rest of the unfortunate soul's in this party… That they are being exploited by nothing but a fake…"

* * *

_In another place in another time, the Sword Hero__'s party was full of people who believed in him, and in his strength, however, there were those that wished for their self-righteous justice, and where once a symbol of justice accepted them, in this world that symbol was different and it had rejected them... _

_...with nowhere to go, and nowhere to enacted their justice, their hearts darken a lot sooner… and so, the Sword Hero would soon find that the strength he took so much pride in, could be a very flimsy thing and that the distance he had with his party, would turn into a self-fulfilling prophecy…_

_Because unlike what Ren thought, they had not been transported to paradise__… No, he would soon understand that world he now inhabited, could be a cruel one…_

* * *

Sunlight bathed her, like a soothing balm. There was also a nice breeze to go along with it that made the entire thing all the better. If she had to point out a single thing that annoyed her, was the sound of teeth grinding, coming from her companion.

"Zwevit Wind Bolt!"

Opening one eye she saw the wind projectile hit a flying reptile, puncturing a hole in its chest. The creature gave one last shriek as it fell to the ground.

"Nice shot Rino-chan!" The voice came from the only man in the party, that raised his weapon in the air in enthusiasm.

_He__'s like a grown-up child… This is a Legendary Hero… _The girl snorted. The grinding sound intensified, and she found her eyes traveling to the other member of the party, as she tried to mask her amusement.

_If your face gets any more flushed, we won__'t be able to tell where it ends, and where your hair begins princess…_ Elena thought in silent amusement watching as the First princess of Melromark seemed ready to burst a vessel, as she gritted her teeth, her fists clenched at the side.

_Rino really gets her out of shape, doesn__'t she? Well not my problem, I'm fine with this, since I can just lay back and relax…_ The girl concluded as she stretched on the grass.

"Air Strike Spear!" The blond man declared launching his spear in the air, the green streak of light, easily downing two more Flying raptors, as they fell from the sky, to join the mountain of corpses around the field.

"Motoyasu-sama, is this going to take long, I'm bored…" The princess exclaimed almost whining, her posture going almost meek, a stark contrast to a few moments ago.

"Haa sorry about that Malty-chan, but just hold on for a while longer, Rino-chan still needs a few more levels..." Motoyasu replied looking slightly apologetic as he sent a side glance to the petite mage who had her eyes closed in focus.

Elena turned on her side to hide a traitorous grin, as Malty face turned constipated, her body shaking with rage.

"...but don't worry! After this, we will be going to Ehrenhaft village! There is a pretty good quest there that I want to complete, and I heard there are lots of different stores there, so you girls can go have a shopping trip if you want." Motoyasu explained finishing with a wink.

Does he think that everyone is a simple-minded idiot like him..? Well, as long as he's paying we might as well enjoy it… Elena considered, closing her eyes again, and relaxing.

"Ehrenhaft Village is it..?" Malty murmured, biting her lip, as realization seemed to spread across her face.

Waving her hand, she caught the Spear Hero's attention, with a wide smile, "Motoyasu-sama if that is the case then I and Elena will be returning to Castle Town to get ready for the journey, so please join us when you're done!"

"Wait, what?" Elena questioned rising to a seated position.

Malty turned to the seated girl, her smile turning into something dark, "Come along Elena." She ordered, and without waiting for a response, she went on her way humming.

Slowly Elena raised off the ground suspicion apparent on her face.

* * *

She would never admit it out loud, especially since her father was a somewhat believer in their national religion, but both the prayers and the general atmosphere of the Cathedral of the Three Heroes freaked her out. Elena also prided herself on being a good judge of character and being able to easily read a person, something she had picked up from her mother. The woman had a special touch when it came to deal with her customers, which had been part of the reason she had been able to amass a small fortune. As fate would have it Elena had inherited her gift, so she could never repress the shiver that ran down her spine, every time she locked eyes with a devout follower of the Church. There was always something in their eyes that screamed insanity.

_Where the hell is Lesty?! She__'s the one that should be dealing with this not me…_

Footsteps echoed, as the prayers stopped, and a sister came forward motioning for her, and the princess to follow her deeper into the cathedral.

Once more her eyes fell on Malty, and her mind tried to figure exactly what the first princess was plotting since she seemed to have given up on hounding the Tate-no Yuusha for the time being.

They crossed the dark marble corridors in silence, the darkness only illuminated by the torches on the wall until they came across a withered wooden door.

The sister knocked on the door, and waited for a few seconds, before a voice echoed, slightly muffled from the other side. Opening the door, the woman motioned for both girls to enter.

Her eyes went to the sister who had her head slightly bowed, before following the princess into the room. Inside was a simple office, but the various texts on the walls, along with a multitude of candles made her apprehension raise to new levels.

"Malty-sama to what do I owe the pleasure?" The only other occupant in the room questioned, tearing his eyes away from some form of a manuscript.

"I didn't come here to trade pleasantries Bishop, I only came to verify something."

_Bishop..? This is the Bishop of the Church of the three heroes?_ No matter how the girl looked at the man, she found herself feeling almost disappointed that the person who held so much power inside their religion, second only to the pope himself, seemed to be rather plain.

"What is it that her highness wishes to verify then?" The man question clapping his hands.

"Tell me, are our fugitive knights still conducting their slave operation in Ehrenhaft Village?" Malty asked.

The man blinked twice, before nodding slowly, "Yes, of course. While their righteous endeavors in Seatto region did help our religion grow, we do need a steady amount of donations to keep our esteemed church running."

_Fugitive Soldiers? Slave Operation? Seatto Region? I__'m hearing some pretty heavy stuff…_ It took her a moment to connect the dots. She had an inkling that the official story behind what had happened in Seatto had been heavily modified, but she still felt a small amount of shock at what she was hearing.

"So that fool is doing a good job then, I thought he would have screwed up by now, and they had changed locations, but it seems I was wrong." The princess commented releasing a small snort.

The bishop however nodded enthusiastically, "Yes quite useful I might say. Thanks to him, our brave devotes have been able to avoid detection from your mother's shadows."

The princess scowled at the mention of her mother's agents before reigning it in, "Well it's always good to keep some people in close contact… You never know when they might be useful."

"Yes, your college friend is most definitely a blessing in that regard…" The Bishop agreed. "But pardon my curiosity, why the interest all of the sudden?"

The princess's lips turned upwards into an almost sadistic smile, "Ohh it's just that I have some unwanted merchandise that I need to dispose of…" She purred.

_Unwanted Merchandise? Ohh lord__…_ Elena realized with a small trace of horror.

"Princess…" The girl hesitated for a moment, "...are you planning to hand Rino over to them?"

Passing a hand over her red mane, Malty sneered, "She as been an annoyance long enough, such is the punishment of getting in the way of the next Queen."

_...poor girl, that__'s way too extreme…_ " Elena swallowed, "Even so, she as been leveling with Motoyasu-sama, so she won't be easily subdued…"

Once more the first princess scowled, before raising her voice, "Who do you think your talking too? I'm not an idiot, I have that covered…"

* * *

"What exactly are we looking for?" Elena questioned, in a low tone.

"Will you stop with the questions already, I'll tell you when I find it!" Malty snarled.

For over thirty minutes both girls had been rummaging Aultcray's personal Treasury, in search of what Elena didn't know, but she knew that Malty had proclaimed it would let her deal with Rino even if she had leveled up.

During the trip, Elena couldn't stop thinking about Rino, and the heinous fate that awaited the girl. She didn't have anything against the petite mage in particular, at most she found the girl way to honest, and perhaps annoying, but as long as the Spear Hero didn't ask her to contribute in hard work she had been fine leaving that to both of them. Rino had been able to convince the blond young man into letting her join in his monster hunting endeavors, though from her point of view it only seemed like the hero was just entertaining her, with no real intention of letting her join him in a real battle.

The princess, however, saw that as a threat to her position as main support to the Spear Hero and had decided that the mage needed to be dealt with.

A crashing sound echoed, followed by some light cursing as a chest fell from the top of an old cabinet kicking up dust everywhere.

Something caught the girl's eyes, as she found an altar at a corner, also filled with dust, besides a round spot in the middle that stood out since it appeared as if something had been removed recently.

Squinting her eyes, she passed a hand over the inscription on the front of the altar, clearing it of dust.

"Qten' Lo's National Heirloom?" Elena read out-loud, tilting her head.

_How the hell did the king get his hands on a National Heirloom from Qten__' lo? Those people only trade with Siltvelt last I heard, and it's impossible to get there without authorization from the Heavenly Emperor…_ The girl considered, her eyes going back to the clean spot.

"Princess, where did your father get a National Heirloom from Q'ten' Lo, and why is it missing?" She questioned the other girl.

"How am I supposed to know?! I don't pay attention to that Old fool's drivel. He probably threw it out, but if you want to know, it was some kind of ancient egg or something… Now, how about helping me search, instead of making stupid questions?" Malty demanded, her voice coming out slightly muffled, as she searched another treasure chest.

_Ancient Egg? Wonder what kind of creature would hatch from something considered a National Treasure__… But more importantly, something like that would probably be worth a small fortune, and the king just threw it out? Damn Royals…_

"Haaa!" The princess yelled almost victorious, "I knew there was still some around here. That Old fool is way too attached to the past."

Elena approached the princess from behind trying to see just what had she been looking for, and peering over her shoulder, she saw a small wooden chest. The inside of the chest was completely covered in red velvet no doubt to protect the item inside.

Grabbing the object, the princess brought it to eye level, a grin blooming as she observed the transparent liquid inside.

It took only a moment for Elena to understand its purpose, although she failed to understand how such a thing would be useful.

"Princess… Poison normally only works on Low-Level people so unless that can bring down a Dragon I doubt it will work on Rino." Elena commented cautiously.

Turning around, the princess's eyes never left the flask, "Normally you would be correct, but this isn't your normal poison. This one is special… Very special…"

"Special?"

The princess nodded, as she shook the flask, it's content reflecting the dim torchlight, " Yes, most poisons work against levels, that's why higher-level adventurers don't even bother with them since high-level monsters won't even feel it. This one… It's also useless in that regard. Doesn't work neither on Demi-Humans nor in Monsters…"

"So only on humans then…" Elena murmured.

"Quite right!" Malty exclaimed, "The reason why? Its because it was developed in Siltvelt in an attempt to deal with my Father, and the reason why it's special is that it works off Magic Reserves. The bigger one's Magic Reserves are, the stronger and more lasting the effects become."

"If it was developed to deal with your father, and works out of magic potential…" Elena bit her lip very slightly, "...then, won't it just kill her?"

Laughter exploded from the princess, even as her red hair swayed, "Ohh no, of course not. that idiot would be notified if Rino died, and that would raise some questions. This one is a paralyzing one, after that, we only have to take her to the right place, and the moment she gets her slave seal she'll be kicked out of our party."

_Makes sense__… Killing his Majesty would only bring upon the entire wrath of Melromarc down on them, while if they had successfully captured him they could have negotiated a ceasefire with far better conditions…_ Elena concluded.

"Besides…" Malty continued almost purring," She's still our party member, so to honor that, I'll still be doing her a favor. Their leader is an old colleague of mine and he sometimes likes to have a taste for his merchandise before selling it…" The princess rubbed the flask against her cheek almost caressing it, a happy smile morphing in her face, "I'll be helping Rino-chan graduate from a little girl into a woman, and even if she won't be able to move, or talk she will still be aware of everything and will be able to enjoy every second of it… Aren't I such a good friend?"

_No__… You're a sick, twisted bitch…_ The words remained in the back of the girl's throat, as she clenched her fists behind her back.

"This college friend of yours... Just what kind of person is he?" Elena asked apprehensively.

The princess's attention switched from the flask to Elena, and stared blankly for a moment, "You have a nice face, and body Elena, so I'll tell you... He is the kind of person you don't ever want to come across alone, he's cut from the same cloth as the pig king." Malty finished with a shudder.

Elena's face blanched, as she too had heard the vile stories about the king of Faubley.

"...He was also part of the Whip Hero's party before they went on their separate ways... So rather than his rotten personality, the truly scary thing about him..." The princess's eyes glazed slightly, her voice dropping to a mumble, "...is how strong he is..."

Her fists clenched tighter before relaxing. She felt her heart go out to Rino, she really did, but she knew better than to get in the Malty's way unless she wanted to share the petite mage's fate.

_I__'m not a good enough person to stick my head out for others…_

_...forgive me Rino..._

* * *

_In another place, in another time the Spear Hero__'s naivety, and self-delusions, had led a young girl to face a terrible fate… By a whim of fate, she had avoided that fate, only to be heading to an even worse one… And it would be a very long time before the Spear Hero realized that there was a difference between loyalty, and blind faith... _

_...that the friends he so chose to believe in were not his friends at all, and that his naivety would cost him the few that would have truly stood by his side… _

_Because unlike what Motoyasu believed, they had not been reincarnated in heaven… No, he would eventually understand just how hellish his new world could be…_

* * *

The dirt roads continued, slight bumps making the owner of the Carriage current task harder as the characters that he still had trouble deciphering danced in the tome, however, his thoughts lay elsewhere.

"Damn that idiot…" The owner cursed lightly, "If your going to try and help people then at least be sure to do it in a way that doesn't cause trouble…"

The ears of the girl at the reigns twitched slightly as she released a tired breath, "He does seem to have good intentions, but the way he goes about it…"

"It's just like Ryou said, hell is filled with people with good intentions…" The owner accused, before continuing in a higher tone, " It's like common sense doesn't even register on that buffoon…"

"Yari-no Yuusha-sama does seem a little hmm…" The girl trailed off trying to figure out a way to describe the Spear Hero.

"Stupid? Naive? Dense? Idiotic beyond belief?" Naofumi ranted from the back.

Raphtalia's expression turned slightly apologetic, "I was going to say air-headed, but…"

"Tsk… I don't have time to be cleaning after his messes, and yet he's the one who racks all the rewards...He sure got it easy, doing however he pleases…" Naofumi finished, turning back to the tome in his hand.

Raphtalia just offered a small smile.

"...And Filo is going to send Spear guy flying, with a full-powered kick!"

The girl's smile turned into a grimace, as she heard the last part of the song the oversize filorial had been singing. The grimace soon turned into a frown, as she heard a mild snort from behind her.

"Does it bring you that much joy… That she kicked him in that place..?" Raphtalia questioned slightly exasperated inciting another snort from the shield hero.

"That was the highlight of my life since becoming the Shield Hero, maybe even the highlight since I was born," Naofumi smirked.

"I don't know what to say…" The girl moaned.

"Naofumi… There are some more strange people…" The other over-sized filorial announced in a cheerful tone, her voice oddly melodic. Unlike the one on the right who sported an almost white plumage, save for a few pink feathers, the one that had spoken was completely pink.

"Sakura!" Raphtalia yelled, "I already told you, you shouldn't treat Naofumi-sama so casually!" She continued, before turning to the Shield Hero in question, "Naofumi-sama, please say something."

"It doesn't really matter to me what she calls me... You're the one who decided to attach the honorific to my name, besides she's the only one who can pronounce it correctly anyway." The Shield Hero countered as he made his way to the front, near Raphtalia.

Hearing the young man's words made the Demi-human lower her ears slightly, she did have a hard time pronouncing her Master's name.

"Tsk, this again…" Naofumi complained, his lips turning down, "This is the third group today, and we still haven't hit noon yet."

"Yay, it's almost lunchtime!" The white filorial commented, with a small jump, that rocked the entire vehicle.

"Sakura is hungry…" The other one complained.

Their words brought a nasty smile to the shield hero's face, one that filled Raphtalia with a sense of trepidation.

"It would seem that lunch is about to be served then." Naofumi almost drawled.

"Naofumi-sama, please! Even if they are thieves, you shouldn't say such a thing! What if they develop a taste for human flesh?!" Raphtalia yelled once more.

The Shield Hero clicked his tongue in annoyance, "And here I was thinking we could save some money. But I guess it would be bad if they start eating people, I don't want to give people any more reasons to hate my guts."

Slowly the two Filorial Queen's came to a stop in front of the group of rough-looking men, all of them sporting some degree of amusement or condescension towards their unlucky victims.

One of the thugs came forward a couple of steps, his smirk changing into a welcoming smile, "Hello there traveler, we couldn't help but notice that's some heavy cargo you have there, so me and my mates here were thinking we could offer you some help, out of goodness of heart and all." The thug finished, resting his sword on his shoulder.

_Are these guys even trying? The last two groups said the same thing word for word..._ Naofumi deadpanned, before releasing an annoyed sigh, " I'm not really in the mood to deal with this again…" He said mostly to himself, "We don't need help, not your brand of it, so out of goodness of heart, we're giving you the chance to walk away."

"Goodness of heart..?" Raphtalia mouthed in disbelief.

A small laugh erupted from the main thug, followed by snickers from the rest of the group, "You must be new to this so I'll give you a pass, but even a kid like you must know how this is supposed to go, right?" The main thug asked condescendingly.

"Yeah…" The Shield Hero drawled once more, continuing after jumping out of the carriage." I know exactly how this is going to go… Filo, Sakura, Raphtalia, let's go get some more merchandise to sell!"

"Okay!" Filo cheered, as she dashed forward.

"Sakura thinks these people are getting annoying anyway…" The pink feathered filorial added, following after the other in a burst of speed.

"A Legendary Hero stealing from thieves… What is the world coming too…" Raphtalia complained, already at the Shield Hero's side, her sword in hand.

"Stop complaining! Why shouldn't I take advantage of them when they are so graciously throwing themselves at us?"

Shaking her head once more, the Demi-human released an incoherent mumble, springing into action a moment later.

"Kill the birds, and that guy, but leave the girl! We are having loads of fun tonight boy… Guh!" The leader ordered before grunting as his feet slide across the ground, his arms shaking from the effort of blocking the kick from one of the Filorials.

"Gah!" The pained grunt was followed by a crashing sound, as one of the thugs blurred from view, hitting a tree and toppling it over, courtesy of a kick from the pink one.

"Yah!" The shout originating from Raphtalia, as she weaved under a slash, before delivering one of her own, cutting her opponent from hip to shoulder. Twirling around a sword missed her head, and she brought the handle of her weapon to the newest attackers temple, instantly knocking out the man.

The demi-human ears twitched lightly at the sound of rustling leaves, " Naofumi-sama behind you!" She warned.

The Shield hero turned to the side to see three more thugs coming out of the woods. One quickly came forward his sword already raised in an effort to behead the young man's head.

"Change Shield: Great Wolf Shield!" With the command, green light engulfed the small shield in his arm, turning it into a dark grey kite shield, a snarling wolf visage engrave in it.

A loud clang followed as the sword met the shield, an act that put an almost sadistic smile on the Shield Hero's face, "You people never learn… Counter Shield: Great Wolf Howl!"

A phantasm of a Wolf Head materialized out of the shield, and snarled, before releasing and howl so loud, that the three thugs fell to the ground covering their ears in pain.

"Zweit Fire Bolt!"

Turning his head to the side, Naofumi saw the fiery projectile quickly crossing the distance, and raised his hand towards it.

"Lion Emblem!" In front of the Shield Hero's hand, an ethereal orange shield formed, similar to his other defensive skill, with the striking difference of having a lion emblem in it. The magic firebolt hit the emblem a moment later exploding, yet the flames that followed were quickly absorbed into the ethereal shield.

Once more the Shield Hero grinned, as the eye of the lion emblem shined brightly, shooting a beam of light across the battlefield, finding purchase in the leg of the White Filorial Queen, enveloping the appendage in a flame-like aura.

Pulling her leg back, breaking the clash between the Thug boss, Filo quickly delivered another kick, her orange glowing claw once more meeting the sword, and shattering it before meeting the man's chest. Blood exploded from the man's mouth, as his chest caved in, and a moment later he was sailing over the trees, and out of view.

"Guh! They got the boss! Let's run for it!" One of the thugs shouted, before breaking into a dash, quickly followed by the remaining thugs.

"Ohh no you don't! Sakura stop them!" Naofumi ordered, pointing towards the retreating thugs.

"Okay…" The Pink Filorial exclaimed, crouching low, blurring out of sight a moment later. A dust cloud exploded along with bodies flying left and right. A sound of displaced air followed, as a small girl gracefully touched down beyond the thugs with one foot touching the ground. Her green dress fluttered in the wind, as she turned her head sideways, her long pink hair swaying lightly.

"High Quick Strike..!" She intoned with a small smile, her voice followed by bodies hitting the ground with a multitude of pained groans.

_They eat enough to feed a small army, but there__'s no denying how effective they both are…_"Good job Sakura."

"Hehehe Sakura has been praised!" The pink-haired girl giggled lightly.

"No fair! Master praise Filo too!" A similar-sized blond-haired girl demanded.

"Yeah… Yeah… You did well too Filo." Naofumi commented, waving his hand in the air.

"Booo! Master didn't mean it!" She fumed, crossing her arms.

"Filo stop acting so spoiled!" Raphtalia scolded.

The blond girl just humphed, closing her eyes, and looking away with a pout.

"Alright enough of that, let's round them up." The Shield Hero ordered.

* * *

Yet again, the Shield Hero found himself on the receiving end of a disapproving stare courtesy of his most valued party member, one that he had learned to strategically ignore.

_Don__'t know what her problem is… She knows we need the money, and the best way to do it is to buy low and sell high, that's one thing I learned even before coming to this forsaken world, but if instead of buying low I can collect merchandise for free why shouldn't I? Then again…_ "You know… You guys suck…" He commented offhandedly, inspecting a golden bracelet. "I mean this is hardly worth your lives…"

One of the thugs opened his mouth but stopped short as a trickle of saliva dropped on his bald head. Inclining his head he found himself palling, as more saliva escaped a wide beak, just a few centimeters above his head.

"Naofumi-sama…" Raphtalia moaned once more, rubbing her forehead. "I'm sure Rishia-chan doesn't have to deal with this."

The Shield Hero scowled slightly before answering, "Of course she doesn't, because her party leader can just teleport around at a whim."

"Are you still holding a grudge over that?" She questioned, "You know that Ryou-sama mentioned Northern Village when he teleported, that's Rishia-chan home village, so you could just go there and ask him about it."

The shield hero threw the golden bracelet back into a small pile of assorted items, before answering, "Sure I could, but chances are he as probably moved on, so it would be meaningless to go there."

Naofumi had the Bow Hero in higher consideration than the other two heroes. Ryou had not only helped then on more than one occasion but had been forthcoming with information…

…_but I know nip-kicking information when I see it, and he was doing it…_ It hadn't been that the information Ryou had given him about Melromarc's religion had been wrong, Raphtalia and the few villagers he had inquired, confirmed most of it, and maybe because he was betrayed he had grown paranoid but deep down he felt that Ryou had been hiding something more, and that wasn't everything…

_He could have intervened, and he didn__'t…_ A small traitorous part of him echoed in the depth of his mind, one that the shield hero tried to squash with impunity. Logically speaking the Bow Hero's reasoning had been sound. Ryou had seen the dangers of their new world before he had and moved to stay under the radar, however, the Bow Hero failed to realize a critical flaw in his own plan. No matter how hard he tried, he would never truly be able to stay out of sight, his status as a Legendary Hero would follow him everywhere.

But even when Naofumi had rationalized all of the Bow Hero motives and actions, there was still no abating both the anger he felt and the hell he had been forced to endure, and for that, he found he could never truly lower his guard around his fellow hero.

His eyes found Raphtalia out of habit, and they soften a fraction, almost imperceptibly, as some of his anger ebbed away. She was a blessing he didn't know if he deserved… Her words back then had been worth more than gold, and his one saving grace. And for believing in him, and supporting him she would always have his eternal gratitude.

Raphtalia also did seem to have the Bow Hero in very high consideration too, but with how Motoyasu acted, Ryou might as well look like a saint in her eyes.

"Maybe not so… Even if Ryou-sama isn't there anymore, I did hear that the area was doing much better and merchants were flourishing there."

That brought the Shield Hero to a halt, as he mused over the information.

"I suppose it's worth a try then, at the very least we will be able to sell our merchandise, and taking into account how many of these guys there are, we will probably have a full inventory when we get there…" Naofumi considered out-loud.

"Haaa Yuusha-sama…" One of the thugs said, gaining the attention of the Shield Hero, "...If its money your after, then there's this rumor I've heard, that might be worth your time."

The Shield Hero narrowed his eyes in suspicion, but inclined his head lightly, "Speak."

The bonded thug shuffled a little, "Word as it that a lord of a region in the south-east is offering a hefty reward to anyone who deals with a colony of gryphons that have been terrorizing his village."

The Shield Hero scoffed at the information, "Yeah right… If its a noble then he'll just skimp out on paying anything the moment he realizes who I am, and how do I even know you're telling the truth…"

"I have the quest request in my pocket, and last I heard, the gryphons have already done a lot of victims, both among the villagers and traveling merchants. He's so desperate he's offering thirty gold coins to anyone who can solve the problem." The thug explained.

"Thi-Thirty gold Coins?!" Naofumi stammered in shock, and even Raphtalia's eyes widen at the ludicrous amount.

The thug nodded rapidly, "Yes… That's how bad the situation is!"

Quickly making his way to the thug, the shield hero shoved his hand into his pocket, bringing out a neatly folded piece of paper. Opening it, his eyes squinted, as he skimmed over the content.

_It seems to be an official Quest Request__… And if the Noble is that desperate, then maybe he'll jump at anyone willing to help, even if its the rotten Shield Hero, and if he doesn't I can always persuade him with Filo, she's much better at it then Balloons… _Naofumi concluded, nodding to himself.

"Guess it's worth a try, thirty gold coins are nothing to scoff at…" The Shield Hero mumbled, before glaring at the assortment of thugs, "You should be thankful to this guy, he just saved your sorry behinds from becoming food."

Some thugs did look relieved, however, a few were throwing suspicious glances towards their savior.

"Raphtalia, Sakura, Filo let's load this into the carriage, it seems we have our next destination figured out…" Naofumi stated, and his party nodded, as they quickly filled the inside of the vehicle with their new loot.

A few minutes later, the Shield Hero was out of view, leaving behind a group of tied up thugs in the middle of nowhere.

One of the thugs turned his head to the side, "Mate… That was pretty quick thinking on your part, you saved us!" There was a hint of appreciation, along with relief in the man's voice.

"Saved you?" The other thug inclined his head for a moment, before rising to his feet, as the rope fell. "Who said anything about you being saved? Scum like you only deserves one fate…"

With a puff of smoke, a short sword appeared in the man's hand, and an instant later blood erupted all around, as every single thug fell to the ground headless.

Cleaning the short sword from blood with an empty swing, the young man searched his side pouch, bringing out a white mask, along with a small crystal orb.

"Thank goodness for Illusion magic…" The man mumbled, placing the mask on his face. Adjusting it, he raised the small orb to eye level, as a blue glow surrounded it.

"Captain, the mission was a success." The man announced, his posture going rigid, as an image of a woman appeared in the orb, wearing a similar mask to his.

The woman in the image nodded, "I trust there were no issues?"

The young man winced, "No, besides the fact that I was kicked by a Filorial… I'm going to be feeling it in the morning…"

A small smile broke on the women's face, "They certainly are phenomenal those Filorials that Naofumi-sama is raising, I saw one of them kick the Yari-no Yuusha-sama in the crouch, and it was quite impressive."

The man's entire body shook, as his face went as pale as his mask, "...and suddenly I'm grateful she only grazed me… But besides that, for a moment there I actually thought I was going to be dinner! Tate-no Yuusha-sama should exercise some moderation, and his party member was right, a hero stealing from thieves sends a bad message, those are other people's belongings." The man complained.

His words brought out a small laugh from the woman, " He certainly goes about it in an interesting way, but on the other hand he as been doing a fantastic job keeping the roads clean. Besides we can turn a blind eye to it, after all our _esteemed king_ is being a little stingy as far as Naofumi-sama is concerned, so just consider this his reward."

The masked man nodded slightly, "Well, at least he is going where he should…" He trailed off, as another thought crossed his mind, " But why are we going about this in such a way? I mean it's only gryphons, so why send all three heroes there? Couldn't you have asked Ryou-sama to deal with it, he is your favorite after all."

The question removed the smile from the woman's face, as a far more serious expression took over, "I did. Her Majesty does wish for the four of them to work together."

The man frowned, "But even if her majesty, Mirellia-sama wishes for it, the relationship between them is far from good, specially as far as Tate-no Yuusha-sama is concerned…"

The woman nodded in acknowledgment, "Indeed, that's exactly why I have also asked Ryou to go there. If there is one thing I have learned about him is that while he doesn't like to pick sides, he won't stay put if something is happening right in front of him, so I hope he will meditate between them, and hopefully, relationships between the four heroes will improve. With the reports we keep getting about the church of the three heroes, its paramount that that their relationship improves."

"That religion as been a thorn in our country for a while, and with her Majesty away they seem to have gotten much bolder…" The man commented lowly.

"A thorn that will have to be removed sooner or later…" The woman stated in a darker tone, "But that aside there are also other reasons for us to be sending the four of them. There have also been sightings of a massive gryphon among the smaller ones, which might indicate that they are being led by a Gryphon King."

"A Gryphon King is a truly fearsome beast, but I still think that sending all four of our heroes is a little bit too much…"

"Perhaps, but better safe than sorry…" The woman murmured. "Nonetheless, return to Castle Town, immediately, and keep an eye on the church." With those orders, the image was cut off.

Pocketing the small orb, the man released a small sigh, as his head turned towards something in the distance.

"More work... Here I was thinking that I could finally go see the body of the dragon, Ren-sama killed... Guess I'll have to leave it for later then." The man complained out loud, eyeing a far-off mountain, where dark clouds were gathering near the summit almost ominously. With a shrug, the man went on his way following the same path as the Shield Hero...

...In the opposite direction of the mountain...

* * *

_In another place in another time, the Shield Hero would have found in a clash with a dragon just how deep his hatred for those that tormented him and for the world at large ran, in this world however he was spared from that fate, but unfortunately, the Shield Hero's path was full of hardships and unknown to Naofumi, he was on collision course with a far worse Nightmare__… _

_Because unlike the other two, Naofumi already knew how evil his new world could be, but he would soon be reminded of just how much__… Because the world that he had been transported too, was a very cruel one indeed…_

* * *

…_And the Bow Hero?_

_In another place in another time, the Bow Hero was someone who cared only for his justice, and the praise he received from it__… In this one the new Bow Hero, cared not for such things, only for his own survival, and used his foreknowledge to try to secure a better future while keeping everything on a straight path, one he thought he knew, however, thanks to his own delusions, Ryou Takuma was unable to see the bigger picture, and failed to realized that fate did not dance to the whims of man… _

_...and so the path he had been so desperately clinging too, vanished like a wisp of smoke in the wind if it ever existed in the first place__…_

…_because his new world was not the one he knew about, but it could still be just as cruel…_

* * *

_Next Chapter : Past, Present and New Mission_


	30. Past, Present and New Mission

**A/N - **Well guys I'm back with another new chapter, and where back to Ryou for now, though take note this chapters picks off were we left before the intermission one, with the next one picking up there, and being the last of the Northern Village for a good while.

Now, where Ryou saves Raphtalia's old friend, comes up with a new idea to increase the firepower of his party, finds out more about Quartz origins, and finds out what the the previous Bow Hero's used to stand for much to his amusement.

* * *

**Chapter 30. Braving Into a New World: Past, Present and New Mission**

The girl's face morphed into one of fear, but Ryou hardly noticed, completely immersed in his thoughts.

_Everything else I could take as a natural consequence of my presence, but this?_ It couldn't be attributed to his presence at all. Raphtalia's childhood friend had either died around the time they had been summoned, or even before that, and yet here she was standing in front of him, looking a little pale, but very much breathing and still among the realm of the living.

"She's of the Weasel subspecies, not particularly valuable, but not bad to look at, I thought it would fit, yes?" Beloukas explained his reasoning.

Ryou ignored the Slave trader, a light cough, however, did grab his attention. Focusing on the girl once more he noted she matched what he remembered, although it wasn't all that much, to begin with.

"_Are you merciful enough to extend your hand to a slave on the brink of death?_" Once more Raphtalia's voice whispered deep in the confines of his mind, and that became the push he needed.

Ryou crouched near the metal cage, and raised his hands in a pacifying manner, when the girl tried to get as far away from him as she could, even if the effort was mostly in vain since she had already been leaning against the bars on the other side.

"Sorry about that. You just reminded me of someone I knew." He tried in a soft tone. The girl however only pulled the dirty rag, that could hardly be identified as a blanket closer to herself.

_That, in hindsight, was one of the worst ways to start a conversation ever__…_ Racking his brain, he tried to come up with something.

"It's your hair!" Ryou exclaimed, and they both winced at the volume, before he continued in a lower tone, "Errr… Its the same color as my little sister."

_Not a lie__…_

She peaked at him from behind the rag, but he could see suspicion and fear clear in her eyes.

"…She… She's dead?" The girl asked, in a voice both so soft and low that if it wasn't for the silence around them he would have missed it.

"Its…" Ryou took in a breath" …its complicated…" He murmured lowly.

She offered a solemn small nod - one that Ryou had trouble identifying the meaning behind but felt grateful nonetheless.

"My name is Ryou, Ryou Takuma…" He racked his head once more before and idea appeared in his head, "…and I'm the Yumi-no Yuusha, what's yours?" Ryou questioned, remembering that the girl had known of the Legendary Heroes.

"Yuusha?" She murmured releasing a small scoff as she hugged the rag closer. "They don't exist…"

His eyebrows furrowed in confusion for a few moments, then the sinking realization hit him, as well as some degree of sadness.

_Your childhood heroes stop being real when you keep asking for them to come and save you, but they never do__…_ He contemplated solemnly.

Taking a breath, he slowly extended his arm sideways, a soft-glowing yellow jewel coming into view. A moment later the glow intensified, brightening the entire area, the light reflecting off her wide-eyes, as his legendary weapon took on its unsealed form.

"I just got summoned a little less than two months ago, so…" He explained softly, a sad smile on his face "…sorry if I'm late."

The demi-human girl's eyes continued to watch the weapon transfixed. Finally, realization seemed to hit her, as her face scrunched up and she buried it in the rag. The small hiccup that followed felt like a dagger had lodged itself in his chest.

With one hand, Ryou opened the cage watching the girl crying into the blanket, and he shuffled a little closer extending his hand forward,

"Hey…It's alright now..."

She raised her head, tears still running down her face, as her puffy eyes went from his sad smile to the extended hand.

When her small hand reached and grabbed his, Ryou felt that for the second time since he had been summoned to this new world, he had done something truly worthy of his title.

Gently guiding her out of the cage, whatever lingering doubts he had were dispelled. He took in the white dress she had on her, instead of the dirty rags that Raphtalia wore with a small degree of suspicion, however, he soon focused on a light-brown appendage waiving slowly behind her.

"So…What's your name?" Ryou asked,

"R-Rifana…" She sniffled, rubbing her eyes with the dirty blanket.

"You're taking her then?" Beloukas asked, rubbing his hands with a grin.

The voice along with the gesture had an immediate effect on the small girl, as she stumbled to get behind him. The Bow Hero face turned into a blank expression, as he turned his attention to the Slave Trader.

"How much?"

"Seventy-Five Silver." The Slave trader announced.

_More than twice what he asked for Raphtalia__… But I don't have a Psycho Maid stepping on my behalf…_ Ryou concluded. The corner of his lips twitched as a particularly nasty idea entered his mind.

Opening his inventory, he took out the money, and nodding to himself he let the coins fall onto Belouka's hands.

The Slave Trader counted the money with a grin, yet it quickly turned into a frown as he finished counting.

"There's only seventy silver here…"

_Naofumi, I call upon your mighty haggling powers, don__'t let them fail me now…_ "Since I'm not planning on branding her, I'm taking out the ceremony cost, yes?" He finished mimicking the Slave Trader tone in jest.

"B-B-But that is not how this goes!" Beloukas bellowed almost despairingly," Where's the violence? The brutality?! The harsh treatment?!"

"Well I paid you, so now she belongs to me, and my first order of business is to free her!" Ryou chirped with a grin and watched with satisfaction as Beloukas fell on his knees, his face etched in horror.

"Nooo! That's completely against what you were supposed to stand for Yuusha-sama!" The slave trader accused, pointing one finger at him.

"Tough, that's what you deserve for listening to asinine rumors." Ryou shot back.

As a whole, he was completely against slavery, and Raphtalia's friends had suffered more than enough with that brand looming over them. He also had his values, and he would stick to them, although there was a small part of him that wanted some payback from all the shots that the Slave Trader had been taking.

Opening his inventory, he brought out an old familiar cloak from it.

"Here take this, it's cold outside Rifana." He instructed handling the slightly torn and worn out cloak to the small-girl, who took it with wide-eyes.

"Hey Slave Trader, do you have any more demi-human children with you?" Ryou asked after a moment, his eyes still on the girl who was enveloping herself in his old-cloak.

"No… like I said my stock is really low. She's a recent acquisition, though I have the Monster Lottery if your interested, yes?" And just like a switch had been flipped, the man returned to normal with his grin back in place.

_So, Keel, I think his name was is not here... Still, I have to find out how this happened__…_

"Come on, let's get out of here Rifana…" He said with a soft smile, extending his hand towards the small girl.

"Ahh Yuusha-sama, what about the Monster Lottery?" Beloukas repeated.

Ryou for his part paused mid-step as thoughts of Filo, and Quartz made their way into his mind. There were positives to adding another powerhouse to his team, however…

_Onii-shama I__'m hungry…_

_Onii-shama, I__'m going out to hunt…_

_Onii-shama when is dinner going to be ready?_

_Onii-shama, I__'m going out to hunt again, its time for Quartz's third lunch!_

"Yeah, no..." Ryou commented, his shoulders going slightly tense." Unless you have anything that won't eat me out of my hard earn cash, I'll take a hard pass on it."

"The only thing I can think about are herbivore monsters or maybe Dunes. They only eat minerals in the soil but they are hardly battle worthy…" Beloukas proposed.

_Dunes..?_ "The heck are Dunes?" Ryou asked, turning to look at the merchant.

"T-They are like big earthworms, they are kind of cute…" Rifana murmured from his side.

Immediately the image of a familiar worm-like monster crossed his mind, as he scratched his chin in contemplation.

_Well, it did try to eat me, but__…_ "Do other worm-like monsters also eat minerals, or is it just these Dunes?" He questioned, suddenly filled with interest.

"Yes, all the ones I know of at least, but Dunes are really the most sought out, yes."

"Is that so…" Ryou drawled slowly. His mind slowly started to come up with a very curious, if interesting picture.

_The biggest problem with raising monsters is the cost slash efficiency, but if they only eat minerals then I won__'t have a problem…_ The more he thought about it, the more appealing the idea seemed. The monster in his head had been made to last, being able to withstand attacks from a hero, and had the offensive capabilities to match.

_Actually, if they eat minerals, then can__'t I have them mining for me too?_ He realized. That would not only solve all his money problems but would also give him free ores that could be used to power up some of his weapons or to just play around with his new blacksmithing hobby.

_Heck, I could start my own mining company__… With free labor, and no strikes!_

"…_If you want strength, then be greedy about it…"_ Naofumi himself, had at one point said those words, and even if the context where he had utter them had been different, they were still words of wisdom.

_I guess that my dream of raising an army of monsters might not be so far into the future as I thought__…_

"Hey Slave Trader, how long are you going to stay in town?"

Beloukas looked at him inquisitively, his grin widening, "For the rest of the week… Why?"

Ryou' broke into a full-blown almost maniacal grin, "I'll drop by tomorrow. You and I will have some business to discuss…"

The man clenched the front of his coat, "That look on your face Yuusha-sama, I knew you had the right stuff! Its sending shivers down my spine!" He announced gleefully. "I shall eagerly await your return!"

At the man's words, Ryou tried to reign in his thoughts, and facial expression," Yeah you do that…"

Turning to look at the small girl he let his hand rest on top of her head. Just like her friend she winced, but straightened herself a moment later, blinking owlishly when he rubbed her head. "Come on Rifana, let's go."

When they made it out of the building, he realized that night had settled, so he turned and crouch near the demi-human child.

"The place I'm staying is on a neighboring village to this one, but it's still a stretch if we just walk, so get on my back and I'll carry you." He finished, turning to show his back to the girl.

Rifana lowered her head and encircled her small arms around his neck. Shifting slightly, he grabbed her legs, before grinning.

"Grab on or you'll fall." Fair warning given Ryou burst into motion, laughter bubbling inside when the startled girl let out a small shriek.

The gates were left behind, half-a-minute later, leaving only a pair of guards who looked at each other, after a blur passed through, before shrugging already used to the common occurrence.

Thanks to his night vision passive skill, Ryou could perceive what was going on even in the darkness, and he saw a shadow in the middle of the dirt road ahead. A gasp assaulted his ear, confirming that the small girl had also seen their obstacle.

"I-Its a monster!" She cried out.

Ryou tilted his head for a moment recognizing it as one of the sloth monsters that were quickly becoming one of Quartz's favorite snacks.

"Don't worry, its small fry." Came the offhand comment, before Ryou dash forward right into the creature, making his small companion shriek once more.

A clawed paw came down on them, and Ryou went left avoiding the strike before taking to the air, landing with both feet on the creature's head. A moment later he kicked off, sending the monster into the ground.

Landing behind the monster he let go of one of the girl's legs and extended his hand, palm facing the downed monster, that was trying to get back on its feet

"As the source of thee power, and Yumi-no Yuusha, I command thee. Decipher the Laws of Nature and let lightning strike my enemies true. Faust Lightning Strike."

Lightning erupted from his hand easily finding its target. The sloth monster let out a painful screech as lightning bolts danced, and arc all over its body. After three full seconds, Ryou finished the spell and the creature fell once more on the ground twitching, little wisps of smoke coming from it.

"That's that. But I guess even with half-baked magic these monsters are hardly a threat anymore." Ryou commented. Nothing besides what was inside the Northern Cavern was dangerous to him anymore, even with his flimsy defense the lowest of all his stats by far, he had attained such numbers where he could ignore regular attacks, nevertheless, he still evaded them most out of habit.

"S-So Strong!" The girl on his back gushed in awe.

"It wasn't even that strong, to begin with, you know. Stuff like this gets easy after a while." He replied.

Rifana, however, shook her head feverishly, "T-That's not true! I only know one person who could take down a m-monster like this so easily!"

"Really? Because I know a demi-human girl who used to be like you and she could probably deal with something like this with one hand behind her back…" Ryou mentioned casually, and it was as good as an ice breaker for the subject he wanted to breach as any.

"S-She must be very strong…"

There was something in her voice that sounded both like awe with maybe a bit of envy.

"Yup she is… Raphtalia is pretty amazing…" His lip tugged when he felt the small girl stiffen somewhat against his back.

"R-Raphtalia-chan, you know Raphtalia-chan?!" Her voice came out a pitch higher, and her grip tightened around his neck.

"I do, and by that tone so do you…"

The girl ignored his statement, quickly launching her own questions, "I-Is she alright?! Where is she now?!"

"She was doing pretty good for herself last I saw her, she's part of the Shield Hero's party."

He heard a tiny wet laugh, along with a murmur that sounded like_ 'Of course she is__…'._

More trees passed by, the crescent moon barely doing a good job at illuminating the road.

"So how do you know Raphtalia exactly Rifana?" He questioned after a while.

The small weasel-girl shifted a little before answering. "We're friends, childhood friends…"

Ryou hummed, before launching his next question, "So I take it you were also part of Seatto region then, the place that got hit by the first wave."

The girl tightened her grip again but to an almost uncomfortable level, before easing slightly. "Y-Yes… It was horrible… A lot of people lost their lives, like mine and Raphtalia's parents… T-Then when we started the reconstruction, the knights came and sold us to slavery, that was the last time I saw Raphtalia-chan…"

Ryou slowed his pace at that particular piece of information since it came into conflict with what he knew.

_I thought that it was that trash Rabier had gotten all of them, that's why I was convinced it had been him ordering the attack, but if it wasn__'t him, nor Aultcray then who..?_ Ryou contemplated. It could have been any anti-demi-human noble, there was definitely no shortage of them in Melromarc, or it could have been a higher power.

_The Pope? _He considered, with a frown._ What would the Pope stand to gain from raiding a village that had already been mostly destroyed..?_

Ryou's thoughts swirled around the issue before it became clear, as he repeated Rifana's words.

'… _the knights came and sold us to slavery…'_

_Money? Is that it..? He did throw a hissy fit when I took down Gentlewood__…_ It all became clear in Ryou's mind, as he let out a dry chuckle much to the confusion of his company.

_Lo and Behold__… The national Religion of Melromarc gets its funds from corruption and human trafficking… Why am I even surprised…_

"So what your saying is you were sold to different people?"

She took a moment before agreeing, "Yes… The man that I was s-sold wanted a servant, and that was what I did, but when the Slave Trader came he sold me back…" There was a nervous tone in her explanation.

_Was it really that simple? Just a whim of fate and she lived?_ The Bow Hero considered, though the same could have been said for the event that had orphan both him and his sister, just a small decision, that led to a horrible tragedy.

Shaking his head out of those thoughts he took a side peak at the girl. Guess that shines some light on all of this... Even if you will never know you really dodged a bullet there Rifana…

"Your previous owner sounds like the type of guy I would love to introduce my fist too, but then again if I go out of my way to beat up everyone that deserves it, by tomorrow instead of the Yumi no Yuusha, I'll be known as a violent barbarian across the entire continent," Ryou noted with a bit of annoyance.

_Throw one or two punches at people and suddenly you're the Hulk of this world, only not green__…_ Is thoughts were interrupted by a sound, one he recognized as a small giggle.

"Well at least you don't have to worry about any of that anymore, contrary to public opinion, I'm a chilled sort of guy so from now on your free to live your life as you want too." He assured the girl, inciting a gasp from her.

"R-Really Master?"

It wasn't the disbelief that did it, it was the title that made Ryou trip in such a marvelous way that his face ate the dirt before he could even react.

"Ahhh Master are you alright?!" The bundle now seated on his back asked in worry.

Ryou for his part raised his upper body supporting it with an elbow and turned his head to get the girl in his sight, his face entirely serious.

"Rifana… Please never, ever call me that again."

* * *

It took nearly the entire trip to convince the demi-human girl that it was more than fine to call him by his name. When they reached the Ivyred's home, Ryou quickly found Rishia seated on the front porch with Quartz sleeping with her head against the green-haired girl with a blanket over their shoulders.

Coming to a stop near them, he felt some amusement at the sight, especially since the dragon was snoring with drool falling from her opened mouth, his amusement however quickly gave away to some measure of annoyance when he saw a tiny pool, where the dragon saliva had been accumulating.

_What a waste of good money__…_

"R-Ryou what took you so long?" Rishia asked with a pout, gaining his attention.

He felt like rolling his eyes, but deep down he couldn't help the tender feeling that came with such a simple action.

"Sorry, I got caught up in something." He explained, turning around to show the bundle on his back. Said bundle took a glance before her ears flattened, and she hid her face in his back.

"Who is she?" Rishia asked, moving to take a better look at the girl.

A thud followed, and Ryou cringed as Quartz's skull made contact with the wooden floor, yet even that failed to wake her up.

"Before that, can I ask you to draw a bath for her, and get her something to wear? She really needs it, I'll explain in the meantime…" Ryou asked.

Rishia took another glance at the bundle, whose ears twitched at the word bath, before agreeing.

With Rifana busy in the bath, Ryou went to eat some leftovers from dinner, taking note to leave some for the mentioned girl.

"So... Who is that girl?" Rishia inquired, from her place in front of Ryou.

"Her name is Rifana, and she was a slave I bought in Gentlewood." He explained and waited for the outburst that would follow, however to his surprise there was none.

"T-That was nice of you…"

That statement came with warmth and was accompanied by a small smile much to his confusion.

_I was honestly waiting for her to blow a casket at the mention of a slave__…_ Shaking his head, Ryou took a few more bites as he gathered his thoughts.

"She is also one of Raphtalia's childhood friends, so yeah…"

Rishia blinked, then her eyebrows lifted, and her hand rose to her mouth, "Fuee! Really?! She's going to be so happy!"

He grunted in acknowledgment. "As she should, she was the one who made me do it without even being present…" There was disgruntlement in his voice, but without any heat.

"W-What? What do you…" there was a pause as her eyes soften, " Ahh her words back then, you remembered…"

Releasing a sigh he pushed his plate to the side and leaned back to look at the wood ceiling. "I never really forgot Rish… Honestly, those words have been bothering me since then, and when I saw Rifana I couldn't stop myself."

"You did the right thing Ryou… "

_Not the right thing__… The human thing… Although such a notion is lost on the nobles of this world…_ He took a glance at the girl in front of him and relaxed just a fraction._ Well not all of them__…_

"R-Ryou I'm done…" A different voice came from the doorway, announcing that they had company.

His eyes roamed the small girl. Now cleaned she did look much better if a little feeble. The sky-blue dress she had on her made her pale skin much more prominent.

"You do look a lot nicer now Rifana." The girl looked down, playing with the hem of her dress, and bobbed her head.

"Fuee! She looks so cute!" With the declaration Rishia was off, clutching the demi-humans girl's hand. The surprise attack had the small girl taking a step back. looking at the new contact with a mix of fear, and disbelief.

Ryou decided to come to the rescue as Rifana appeared to be considering on making a break for it.

"I don't think you were introduced... This is Rishia, she's my party member, and the daughter of this lord's region."

Rifana stared at him, then back at Rishia, and the change was instant as she straightened herself bending at the waist.

"Ahhh its an honor Rishia-sama!" She squeaked.

The girl's posture and knee response had Ryou grimacing for a moment.

_No child should be this formal, no doubt those manners were engraved into her__…_

Rishia quickly let go of the girl's hand as if it burned, her face almost exploding with color. "Fuee! N-No! Just Rishia is fine!" She exclaimed waving her hands in the air.

"Now you know how that feels…" His complaints, however, went unheard as the sound of a stomach grumbling echoed.

The weasel-girl looked utterly mortified, an expression that brought out a small chuckle from Ryou.

"We left some food from dinner for you if you want Rifana-chan!"

…and that if nothing else, broke whatever inhibitions Rifana had around Rishia.

* * *

After the demi-human had eaten her fill, Rishia had taken upon herself to set her in before withdrawing for the night, leaving Ryou alone in the kitchen.

Taking a quick sip of his tea, he returned to scribble down some more notes on one of his books. Originally they were to help him keep a record of his upgrades, and pieces of information he had been able to gather from his new world, along with his personal notes on blacksmithing. But the one that he was currently writing had something different in it. Inside those pages was the complete sum of his knowledge, both current, and from what he could remember from the story.

_I__'m raising a mighty dead flag with this…_ Ryou mused in cynical amusement.

If he were to give a particular reason to why he was performing his current task, it would be difficult, but his new morbid thoughts were due to him remembering his parents and their fate. It also wasn't something as righteous as for the world's sake. No, it was once again a bout of selfishness from his part. The Bow Hero could see his own progress and fell his strength increasing almost every day, so he couldn't conceive a future where the worst would come to pass.

_But if it does, I don__'t want to leave people out to dry…_ If the worst came to pass, he would leave Rishia and Quartz in Naofumi's care, there was no one else he could entrust them with, and if he wasn't around to change the outcome of the Spirit Turtle Crisis, then he would leave the Shield Hero with the means to do so.

_Even if he will curse me for the remainder of his life, not that I can blame him__…_

Taking another sip of his tea, he stopped mid-action when he felt a now-familiar presence enter the kitchen.

"This is private property you know?" The Bow Hero commented without taking his eyes from the book, however, he did move his gaze when he heard an amused noise from the person that made her way to the cupboards.

"You've been busy Ryou."

Ryou observed with a raised eyebrow as the Shadow Maid worked her way around the cupboards. "That's also a crime just so you know…"

The maid shrugged, and a few moments later Ryou recognized she was also preparing tea.

"Believe me, I have done far worse things in my line of work…"

He sent her a sharp look as he closed the book, "Yes, I'm quite aware of that fact…"

"Holding grudges is a little petty, I thought we were over this…"

"I'll show you petty…" He grumbled before laying his chin on his palm, watching the maid shifting weirdly until he realized she was moving her hips to a sound.

_Is she actually humming a song?!_ Ryou thought incredulously, and for some reason, he felt creeped out.

"I can never get a read on you… Every time I think I have you figured out, you come up with a way to throw me for a loop."

The woman turned around, a cup of steaming tea in her hand before taking a seat in the chair his partner had been previously occupying.

"Once again it's part of my job…" She said as she blew lightly on the cup.

"I think it as less to do with your job, and more to do with the fact that you just like to mess with me…" He quipped and was awarded a secretive smile before she returned to blowing the steam out of her cup.

"So why have you come all the way to nowhere?" He probed after a second.

"All work and no play makes you a very boring young man."

A very indecent reply came up to his mind but he bit his tongue to stop it from escaping.

She continued blowing on the cup until she was satisfied with the temperature. "That aside, tell me did you like my present?"

Ryou didn't even bat an eye at the subject change already more than used to it, but thankfully that was something he needed to talk about.

"Yes… Although I have to ask. Just what kind of egg did you gave me anyway?"

She stopped sipping, and he saw an eyebrow rising above her mask.

"Wasn't it obvious?"

The Bow Hero scoffed at the tone crossing his arms, "Well I'm sorry if I'm not used to an egg changing both in size, and color out of the blue…"

"What are you talking about?"

The woman looked truly confused, so he expanded on it. "The egg… It changed from white to pitch black with some weird light formations inside of it, not only that but it almost tripled in size too."

She set her cup down, her face changing from confused to serious, "Dragon eggs don't do that, and that's what I gave you, a Dragon egg, although…."

"That pause at the end doesn't exactly fill me with confidence…" He shot back, with half-lidded eyes, and saw as the maid shifted a little in her seat, before coughing in her hand.

"Well, I knew it was a dragon egg when I stole it, just not what kind it was…" She admitted almost looking embarrassed.

Ryou brought his palm to his face and released a breath, "Stole it? Stole it from where precisely?"

"King Aultcray's treasury and before that it was stolen from Q'ten Lo's Heavenly Palace, during the war…"

_Quartz, do you also have some kind of misfortune attached to you_? Ryou wondered.

"Are you some kind of animal that steals eggs?" He asked in exasperation before shaking his head, "Never mind that. Rishia told me, that country is remarkably isolated, and even traders have trouble getting in there."

"That's about right… I won't tell you how troublesome it was to get there much less infiltrate the palace, although thankfully there's a lot of infighting there so it made my job a bit easier…" The Maid complained lightly, almost huffing.

"You know… If you stole the egg from the palace odds are it wasn't normal, to begin with." He pointed out.

"Ahh well…" She trailed off once more, and Ryou instantly felt the hairs on his arms rising in slight apprehension.

"What?"

"It might or might not have also been viewed as a national treasure…" The maid admitted trying to look smaller then she was.

"…You mean to tell me that your gift to me, was not only stolen from Aultcray of all people but before that it was considered a national treasure from another country..?" The disbelief in his voice could be felt a mile away.

"Yes… It has been kept in stasis with a seal for a long time to stop it from hatching, so it was at best a trophy I think?"

"Why would you even steal something like that in the first place..?" Ryou asked, blinking.

"That's a bit of a funny story, though I didn't find it very funny back then..." She paused for a moment, to gather her thoughts," During the war, before our majesty was married, our king who was still a general at the time wanted to give Mirellia-sama something exceptional, so he asked us to infiltrate Q'ten Lo, and get some trees from there, that are known for their beauty." The maid's lips turned upwards in amusement, "Me and my team were able to get some seeds, but almost immediately we found out that those trees wouldn't survive anywhere outside Q'ten Lo for some reason, so after a lot of hard work, and creeping around our mission turned out to be a massive failure. I then had the idea of taking something else to appease him, and then we came across a dragon egg, that was herald as a National treasure, so I thought that surely the being that would hatch from it would become a wondrous symbol of Melromarc's strength. Well short story, the king didn't seem to share our views on it and tossed the egg in the treasury. As for me and my team… We became very familiar with a mop and with Castle Town barracks for the next few months…"

_That__'s some devotion… To be in the middle of a war and ordering what can be only considered the country special infiltration forces, to go to another country that was allied with your enemy just to steal a gift for his fiance…_ Ryou admitted with a disbelieving shake of his head. He had been in love before, and knew how to put an effort, but in no way shape or form could he compare himself to the lengths that Aultcray had gone.

_Actually, he is nothing if dedicated isn__'t he? His dedication is out there for everyone to behold, one just has to look at the lengths he goes to make Naofumi's life miserable…_

"Okay, I really don't want to know about Aultcray's love-life and attempts to whoo his wife, especially since at the present she probably just wants to slap the shit out of him. So besides that is there anything else you can tell me about the egg?" He asked.

A chuckle erupted from the Shadow Maid's mouth, as she almost spilled the tea, before wiping her mouth, "There isn't much I can tell you. I already gave you all the information I had. It has been kept in stasis for a long, long time… The egg was ancient actually, it might have even pre-date Q'ten Lo's existence entirely, but besides that, I have nothing else to offer." She answered.

_So if I wanted to find out more about Quartz, I would have to go there personally, and since the only country they trade with is Siltvelt, it__'s an exercise doomed to failure without taking Naofumi along, not even counting that we would have to wait for permission from the Heavenly Emperor to step foot in there…_ Ryou mused, before raising his head slightly.

_Wait..? Heavenly Palace__… Heavenly Emperor… Heavenly Dragon… Is there a correlation there?_ He questioned himself. While he still couldn't see much of a link link between Quartz, and the Dragon God that the Aotatsu adored. There could be a connection between them even if it sounded like a stretch.

_But I can't go on a ghost hunt for Quartz origins, not when there is so much to do__…_

"Ryou?" The maid called out, shaking him of his thoughts.

"Sorry." He apologized, "Just thinking about what you said. But on a side note, since it was stolen should I expect someone to give me trouble over it?"

"Pfff… No… They won't notice it is missing for a while, if ever. As I said, there is a lot of infighting so they are quite occupied with National issues, and you think his majesty will notice something like a monster egg missing? Nowadays he won't even notice if his undergarments are missing much less some egg in his vault… Besides, since it already hatched I doubt someone can track it down." She scoffed rejecting the notion with a wave of her hand.

"She did turn different from other dragons thanks to me being a Hero, although apparently, that's a common theme with us…" Ryou explained ending in a murmur.

The woman hummed in thought seemingly coming to a realization, "That makes sense, the Filorials that Naofumi-sama is raising also turned out different and much bigger than normal."

The new information brought a smirk to Ryou's face. S_o you did end up getting two Filorial Queens__… Heh, have fun with that one Naofumi… _He could almost picture the look of horror on the Shield Hero's face as two attention-seeking human-looking girls pestered him for everything.

"Does your dragon also uses transformation magic?" She inquired curiously.

"Yeah, Quartz can do it on instinct, among other things…" He replied after a moment. Quartz could also somehow use telepathy and had the astonishing ability to almost devastate entire environments just by feeding.

_Not so hot at flying though__…_

"Interesting name for a dragon…" The maid commented with a small tilt of her head.

"I also think so, Rishia was the one who came up with it…" His partner had a good naming sense going for her.

"She has good taste." She added with a small smile on her face.

"When it comes to naming stuff maybe, though her taste in clothes leaves a lot to be desired as does her taste in man."He scoffed.

"That's very true," She said with a small laugh," …Not so sure about her taste in man though... Anyway, I didn't come here to just swap pleasantries, unfortunately…"

"Figures, so what do you have for me?" Ryou interlaced his fingers in front of his chest expectantly.

"I would like you to go to a village called Ehrenhalf. Its located in the southeast bordering a few of the smaller countries, but it's close to Zetouble and since you are already going there I thought you could solve a small problem for us."

Ryou eyed his company for a second. "You still haven't told me who exactly I'm supposed to meet in Zetouble, and what's with the urgency behind it."

The maid shifted once more, eyes moving to the empty cup, "Even I don't know all the details. Only that Mirellia-sama as a vast interest in you meeting that person, and that there is some urgency to it."

_So nothing in concrete then__… Well at the very least I can safely assume it won't be detrimental to my health since it's coming directly from the Queen…_ Ryou reasoned.

"…and what's this little problem you speak off?"

The Shadow took another slow slip, before laying the cup and pushing it to the side, "The village I spoke of is apparently being targeted by a huge flock of Gryphons, already some people have vanished without a trace, including traders."

_Gryphons? Well, they have Dragons, and Chocobos so why not__…_

Taking the Bow Hero silence as a sign to continue, the Shadow did so, "The situation is getting serious enough that the Lord of the region is offering quite the reward, especially since there were sightings of a massive one, most likely a Gryphon King."

_Gryphon King?_ "How strong would you say a Gryphon King is?" He asked drawing some parallels. If a Gryphon King had even half the power of a certain Filorial Queen, he wanted nothing to do with it.

"A Gryphon King is a fearsome creature, but I trust with your power it won't be an issue…" She clarified as a secretive smile bloomed in her face, "…besides, this time I'm sending support to help you if needed."

Ryou raised a brow, "Support? What kind of support?"

"That…" She drawled slowly, "...is a secret!" She exclaimed and laughed when a nasty glare found its way into Ryou's eyes.

"We have been over this you witch…" The Bow Hero almost hissed, "I told you I hated going in blind."

"Who said anything about going in blind? If anything you are quite familiar with them." She finished, and with those words, the maid disappeared before his eyes.

Ryou watched the place she had been standing in before releasing a sigh, "Why do I even bother anymore… Well, I guess we can't stay here permanently, and that does provide us with a route… I do have to deal with Rifana first, along with a few other things."

* * *

The next morning Rifana seemed a little more cheerful and was introduced to Almond and Quartz. Both took the demi-human addition in good spirits, or in Quartz's case, she had just sniffled the little girl, before nodding and leaving to go for her second breakfast.

Rifana had also taken a shine at Rishia, something Ryou was thankful for. His partner for her part was happy to have another girl around, one that was much more feminine than Quartz if the discussion during breakfast between them was anything to go by.

After Quartz returned Ryou ordered a full out gathering in the living room.

"Alright now that everyone is here, there are a few things I want to go over…" The Bow Hero started, looking towards the members of his party.

"What is this about?" Rishia asked blinking in confusion, she was missing her practice lessons with the guards so whatever it was it had to be serious.

"The first thing is that we have a new place to go, I have news that there's a village with a Gryphon problem, so that's our next stop, after that we are going to Zetouble."

"Gryphons?" Rifana questioned with a little apprehension.

"Is Zetouble a place with tasty food?" Quartz asked at the same time.

Ryou nodded at the demi-human question and decided to ignore the gluttonous dragon.

"Yes and that leaves me with the next order of business… What do you want to do Rifana?" Ryou questioned.

The demi-human of the group looked confused, eyes furrowing, and then she shook her head.

"I don't understand…"

Shifting from one leg to the other Ryou explained the situation. "Here's the thing, you're free now so you can do whatever you like. If you want to stay here, I'm sure Almond can accommodate you for the time being, and you will be able to live your life in peace… for the most part."

After letting it sink in Ryou proceeded, "You can also, eventually go join Raphtalia if you want, though that will most likely require you to fight in the waves…" She perked up at the first part but shivered when the word waves came out of his mouth.

"Is Raphtalia-chan also fighting the waves..?"

Ryou nodded.

For a few moments, she made no other movement, reflecting on everything, then she made her decision. "I would like to meet Raphtalia, I want to see her again…" Rifana mumbled, raising her head to look at him.

_Figures__…_ Ryou scratched his head. "That's fine but it will probably take a while before that happens… I can't exactly go around the country to track Naofumi down, we have the stuff to do and got to get ready for the waves ourselves."

"Naofumi?" The small weasel girl inquired.

"He is the Tate No-Yuusha-sama, Rifana-chan," Rishia interjected from her place on the couch.

"Ahh…" Understanding seemed to cross her face, as her ears dropped slightly.

"She could join our party, at the very least until we come across Naofumi-sama." His partner suggested after a moment.

"You of all people should know this isn't a road trip Rish." Ryou reprimanded lightly.

_Besides, I didn__'t save her just to throw her into the fire again…_

The green-haired mage bit her lip, "I know that… But if she joins our party, even if later she decides to do something else, she will be much stronger, and there is nothing wrong with getting stronger."

"Still…" Ryou trailed off. The soonest he could think of meting the Shield Hero would be right before or during the next wave, and that would herald Glass's appearance, and after that things would become a lot more chaotic before they got better. It would be incredibly dangerous to be in his party during that time.

"I… I want to get stronger!" The weasel demi-human squeaked, clenching her fists in front of her.

Ryou released a sigh, before crouching down in front of the girl, and placed one hand on top of her head, "Rifana… This is no joke… You know how ruthless the world out there is, and how horrifying the waves are. As the Yumi-no Yuusha, I won't be allowed to run away from it. There will be times we will have to face those dangers head-on, so think carefully about what you want to do." He advised kindly.

"I…" She paused for a moment, "What happened to me and my family… What happened to Raphtalia and her family… To our village… I don't ever want that to ever happen again!" She exclaimed, as her eyes met his, and he saw something swimming in them, something he had seen before… In Rishia's eyes.

_Is this really the right thing to do? She__'s still a child… _Ryou questioned himself. Raphtalia never had a choice, but her friend did, so was allowing her to join them truly the right thing to do?

"Besides, in the legends, what the Yumi-no Yuusha-sama stands for is also something that I think this world needs…"

_What the Yumi-no Yuusha-sama stand for?_ Ryou questioned inwardly, before voicing his thoughts, "What do you mean, by what the Yumi-No Yuusha stands for?"

She looked at him once more with a hint of resolution, "In the legends, the Yumi-no Yuusha-sama is always the one hero with the greatest sense of justice!"

_The greatest sense of justice?_ Ryou wondered, before releasing a snort, followed by breaking in laughter to the confusion of all present.

"Hahahahahahahaha! G-Greatest sense of justice?! I-I'm sorry Rifana, I don't know where you read that, but its the biggest piece of crap I have heard since I arrived in this world…" Ryou finished chortling.

"Fuee… I think you have a good sense of justice Ryou…" His partner interjected with a frown.

Hearing her words made Ryou lose whatever amusement he had been feeling. "No, I don't. I have my sense of justice, but its not strong or weak, its just mine, and out of everyone in this room it might be the most flawed one."

"But with Gentlewood, I think you did enact justice, the good kind…" Rishia asserted.

_Good kind of justice..? I__'m beginning to see where her obsession with Itsuki came from…_

"That's the thing Rish… There's no good kind of justice… There's only your interpretation of it…" Ryou clarified, massaging his forehead, "Listen, in my old world you could travel to many countries and every single one of them had their own system of justice. Some accepted death as a suitable sentence for heinous crimes, some others wouldn't even consider such a thing no matter how awful the crime was. The same applies here in a way. _Our beloved king_ considers making every single demi-humans life, as well as Naofumi's as miserable as possible, his brand of justice. However, if you go to Siltvelt they consider making humans lives as miserable as possible their brand of justice, so which one is right or wrong? To me their both wrong but maybe that's my perspective against that of your world…" He paused for a moment taking in their thoughtful expressions, "But let me give you another example. Every day, I go to Gentlewood Village for my blacksmith lessons, and every day without fail I see people with slaves. Now if I had a strong sense of justice I would bash the face of everyone who owned a slave, but by that logic, I should have joined Motoyasu when he decided to free Raphtalia right?"

"Fuuee! But that's different!" Rishia shouted, and Ryou leaned his head to the side.

"Different how? A big idiot he might be, but he did act according to his world's values, that's why I say my own sense of justice might be the most flawed here because if I ever spring into action, there will always be a part of me that will judge the situation based on the morals and values of a society that's not this one." Ryou explained, and once again his partner was lost for words.

"Also the reason why I instinctively knew that what Rifana said wasn't true, was because one of the first things I did when I came here was letting an innocent person be accused and take the fall for something he did not do. Where's the justice in that? There was none, not on my side at least, I acted on my self-preservation nothing more." Ryou ended, before turning to the small demi-human girl, who was looking down clenching her fists.

"Listen Rifana, I know what you went through was terrible, but whatever justice your trying to achieve is not going to happen anytime soon. I don't know if you want the people responsible punished, or if you want equal rights for you guys, but the truth is that I can't offer either. Perhaps when the waves are over, and we are much stronger, but no-one knows when that will be…"

Small drops start to fall from her eyes, but she shook her head brushing them with her fist, "I… I just want to hold that flag once more… Along with Raphtalia-chan, and Keel-kun…and I thought that maybe if its the Yumi-no Yuusha-sama, the one who is deemed to have the strongest sense of justice then what happened to us, will never happen again…" She revealed as she continued rubbing her eyes, and Ryou felt his own soften.

"Rifana… Let me impart to you with something I told Raphtalia a while ago… Whatever it is that you read in stories pertaining to us heroes is most likely inaccurate, and if you place us on a pedestal, I guarantee you, you will be left disappointed. Heroes in tales are amazing, right? Here though? We are just human and full of flaws." Ryou explained gently, rubbing her head, "I can't promise you that what happened in Seatto will never happen again, that's not realistic, because like I said, I'm not a god, I'm just human and that comes with the flaws we all have. The only thing that I can give you is my word that if that day comes, I will try my best to make sure it never happens again." He vowed. That was the only promise he could give because stating things like as long as I'm around it will never happen wasn't a realist approach.

"I think Rifana-Onee-Shama, should just get stronger…" Quartz added without raising her eyes from the ground, as her legs dangled slowly from her place on the sofa, "…if Rifana-Onee-shama is strong, she can just punch every bad person away, or sneeze on them."

_Are you trying to adopt everyone in the world into your family?_

"I want to get strong!" The small girl exclaimed once more, before her face morphed in confusion, "I don't know how sneezing will help though…"

"Just ignore that one Rifana." Ryou suggested, before turning to the small dragon, "Quartz, Rifana sneezing on bad guys will only annoy them at best…"

Quartz finally lifted her head, with her lips tugging down, confusion apparent in her face.

_Here__'s to hoping that Raphtalia won't be too pissed about this or I'll definitely be in for a lecture or two…_ Releasing another sigh, Ryou decided to address the girl once more, "If you truly desire to get stronger, and want to join us for however long that might be then I guess I'll allow it, but I expect you to take this for what it is… and that's something both very dangerous, and serious… And also take whatever expectations you have of me as a hero, and throw them out of the window, especially that greatest sense of justice thing, okay?"

Rifana nodded shyly, but her eyes were shining with determination. A moment later a window materialized in front of the small girl, and with a touch, she became semi-official part of Ryou's party.

"Fuee! Welcome to the party Rifana-chan!" Ryou observed as Rishia fussed over the demi-human girl with enthusiasm.

"I-I'll be in your care from now on!" She exclaimed back.

_Our party is getting bigger, it was just me and Rish a couple of weeks ago__…_ Yet, there was another thing he began to consider, as he brought up his party menu. Rifana was currently at level one and for the task, they were going along with everything else coming that wasn't going to be viable.

_We should just power level her a bit until I feel confident in her stats at least__…_ He decided mentally. "Well then let's get to work immediately!" He stated with a clap, getting the attention of everyone.

"What will I be doing?" Rifana asked, her face serious.

"Ohh nothing much…" Ryou drawled with a small grin, shifting his attention to the smallest member of his party, "Tell me Quartz are you still hungry?"

"Dummy Onii-shama, Quartz is always hungry." The white-haired girl explained in a matter of fact tone. At one point such a declaration would have filled Ryou with a sense of horror, but at this particular juncture, it was greeted with satisfaction.

"Perfect…" He purred, looking back to Rifana who's anxiety doubled at the almost wicked grin in the hero's face.

* * *

_Next Chapter - Last Minute Expedition_


	31. Last-Minute Expedition

**A/N -** Hey guys still alive and kicking after a good break, one that was unfortunately not of my own choice. Had to basically take a break to handle some stuff, mostly because of the C-Virus going around, making rounds around the globe. It was specially stressful(and it still is mind you), because while young, I do suffer from asthma, and work in direct contact with hundreds of costumers, adding to the fact that I have another three risk factors home, and I'm sure a lot of you could relate to my struggle.

Thankfully I've calmed down from the whole thing a bit, since I was in no state to write anything, and was also able to change my working schedule to a night one, while not perfect, it means I don't have to deal with tons of people anymore and made the entire thing more bearable.

Hope that your all doing well during this tiring times, its a struggle that all of us got to endure, but I suppose it is what it is...

On another note I read the new LN, and loved it too bits, only thing I didn't liked was how quickly Tact got trashed, (It was more than deserved mind you, and I loved seeing how Naofumi went avenger on his ***), but he made his appearance, started a world war, and got wrecked in one single book, so yeah kind of think it went way too fast there.

That being said, as far as the update schedule goes, I'll try my best to keep at it, but everything being as uncertain as it is we will see... Do look forward to an updated Bow List soonish, not sure if it will come next chapter, but more then likely yes.

That said let's get down to it!

Where Ryou goes in search of more firepower for his team, gains a few more bows, and the party finally leave the Northern Territories.

* * *

**Chapter 31. Braving into a New World: Last-Minute Expedition**

A stray arrow flew through the dark, and stuffy atmosphere around him. Yet a moment later Ryou was forced to crouch as a rocky appendage passed over his head. The momentum of the attack forced Ryou's new nemesis slightly off-balance, giving the Bow Hero a chance to release three new arrows in quick succession, each puncturing holes into the four-legged monster. From the holes, cracks extend all over its body and a second later the creature shattered.

A reasoning thud echoed in the tunnel, as another monster's faceless head met the stone ground, bursting into pieces it's body following suit a moment later.

Cleaning his hands of dust, a towering figure frowned as he took in the tunnel, not that he could see much of anything. "This place is a goddamn death trap…"

"Ohh believe me, you have no idea…" Ryou muttered drily.

Another crashing sound followed as yet another monstrosity met a wall, sending part of the ceiling crumbling on top of it.

"Quartz be careful or you'll bring the entire place crashing down on us," Ryou warned.

The small girl looked back towards him, her face blank as she blinked, before leaning to the side effortlessly, as a fist passed near her head. Small hands lashed out grabbing the appendage, and with a heave, the monster much bigger and heavier than the girl was lifted off the ground before smashing in front of her, sending rocks, and Mithril flying everywhere.

Turning to look towards the tunnel, Quartz's eyes that almost shined with a soft golden glow, narrowed slightly.

"Onii-shama… There's more coming."

Ryou for his part couldn't see anything beyond the veil of darkness, passive skills or not, but there was no mistaking the heavy thumbs that came from it.

"Everyone clear the way!" He shouted. a moment later is Great Wolf Bow was gone, giving way to a curved yellow bow, with feathers adorning its limbs.

**[Gryphon's Feathered Bow + 6 - Rare - Awakened - Equipment Bonus - + 5 Attack, + 5 Agility, Air Strike Arrow Skill, Air Skills Damage Bonus(Small) - Special Effect - Air Strike Arrow Piercing Bonus(Medium), Air Strike Attack Speed Bonus(Medium), Air Strike Arrow Projectile Speed Bonus(Medium), Air Strike Arrow Barrage]**

Leveling his bow with the center of the tunnel, Ryou pulled on a white arrow. An unnatural wind picked up around the hero, that had no place more than a hundred meters below the surface, as the projectile coated itself in a miniature whirlwind.

Red magical particles like droplets gathered around his arrow, giving it an eerie red glow.

"Faust Power!"

Ryou didn't even spare a side glance to his partner at the surprising but not ill-intended support, before releasing the arrow that shot forward in a blur, illuminating the darkness.

His eyes saw the arrow reach the first Mithril Monstrosity, and it might as well have been made of glass for all the resistance that it put. Shattering completly, a second, third and fourth monster quickly following suit, even those not directly in the arrow's path shattered just by the force behind it. Finally, the projectile disappeared from view, continuing its trek down the tunnel, leaving behind only pieces of the opposition.

"Fuee… I think that's the last one for now…" Rishia commented from further behind after a moment.

At the sound of her voice, Ryou looked at his partner with a small exasperated grin.

_I appreciate the effort, but that was so overkill it__'s almost funny_… Support Magic, Ryou had discovered, also worked as a multiplier, on top of every other bonus and number he already had going for him. His normal Air Strike Arrow would had been more than enough to deal with the creatures, so for Rishia to add a thirty-three percent increase(or one third from what he had been able to calculate from his numbers) on top of that, could only be described as silly.

_Well, then again I guess she was only playing it safe..._

His eyes then fell on their newest party member as her two smaller arms hugged the green-haired mid-section tightly. The owner looking at the entire thing with a mix of apprehension, and awe.

"You doing alright there Rifana?"

The girl nodded, in such a way that seemed like her head would fall off, "Y-Yes… But these monsters are much more terrifying than the ones outside…"

"And Quartz can't eat these…" The small girl interjected coming up from behind, before kicking a rock with a small frown, "Onii-shama… These monsters suck…"

"You got that right…" Ryou muttered.

A dismissing sound, came from the other male, "I bet my good arm that everything here is twisted beyond any measure of normalcy…" The man commented as he took a few sniffs of the air, his ears reminiscent of a retriever's rising slightly. "Even I can sense the power of the Dragon Vein here… A Cave overflowing with natural magic… That's never a good mix…"

"But these monsters... I wonder why we didn't encounter them the first time…" Rishia questioned out loud.

Crouching, Ryou picked up a piece of stone, his eyes observing the vestiges of the mythical ore encroached in it. A very soft yellow glow shined from his wrist announcing that his Legendary Weapon was reacting to it.

**[Mithril Elemental Bow - Equipment Bonus - +3 Attack, +3 Magic, Bonus to Elemental Attacks(Small)]**

"Mithril Elementals huh…" Ryou murmured, before rising to his feet, "...I think I know why they are showing up now. If that big ass worm ate ore, then mithril might have been on the menu, it also explains why it made its nest near the biggest vein."

"Makes sense..." The man allowed, inclining his head, eyes peering further into the tunnel, "... the reason why you didn't encounter them was more than likely because they were hiding from the Alpha Predator in these caves, but now that you killed it, these guys are coming out of the woods."

The Bow Hero opened his inventory and as expected Mithril Ore was once again accumulating there, as a result of having received the drops from the new monsters.

_I had to go through hell to get some Mithril, and now it falls from the sky like candy__…_ He huffed in annoyance.

"So kid how much further is it?" The male demi-human asked with a hint of impatience.

"Another ten or so minutes..."

"Good. The sooner we get this done the better, this place is giving me the creeps." The man murmured as he began walking.

Shaking his head, Ryou raised himself, and in a moment he fell in step with the man, the rest of his party following behind with Rifana trying her best to magically merge with Rishia, her eyes going from one side of the rocky tunnel to the other anxiously.

For a minute a blanket of silence fell on the party, and the Hero found his eyes moving towards the new temporary addition to his party as he recalled what let to this last-minute expedition.

**Flashback****…**

* * *

"Haa! Yuusha-sama you have returned, you did mention you had further business with me, but I was hoping you would reconsider my Monster Lottery, yes?" The Slave Trader questioned, rubbing his hands, his unnerving standard grin present on his face.

_Ten out of ten chances this monster lottery is filled with Filorials, and or with Dragon eggs__… _Ryou concluded releasing a breath at the man's antics.

"No I haven't, there's another thing that I'm interested in… Actually there's a couple…" Ryou stated.

Beloukas inclined his head in almost disappointment, but motioned them to follow inside the Storehouse nonetheless, "I see… Then please come in, we will talk inside."

Inside the storehouse, the same nauseating smell hit them both. Since it was the second time Ryou had been ready for it, his partner, however, slapped her hand against her mouth and nose.

"R-Ryou… This place…. So there really is a slave business here.." She confined, head going from side to side eying the cages and their prisoners with apprehension.

"Yeah…" He confirmed simply, making his way to the center of the structure, where the Slave Trader was currently waiting for them.

"So tell me Yuusha-sama, how can I offer my services to you today?" Beloukas asked in curiosity.

"Well first I want you to tell me about the Slave Seal, and how do I go about learning to apply it." He asked.

"Fuee! R-Ryou why do you want to learn that?" Rishia questioned nervously.

The Bow Hero sent his partner a side glance, "Well I want to learn how to brand monsters with it, that's all…" He finished moving his attention back to the Slave Trader never noticing the breath of relief that his partner released.

The man inclined his head placing both his hands behind his back, "Yes I figured that was the case from our last conversation, but allow me to correct you on something Yuusha-sama, what you want to learn is the Monster Training Seal, not the Slave Seal."

"So they are different then. I thought it was all the same thing to be honest."

"A common misconception, those not educated in the art of curses also tend to think the same," Beloukas commented as he moved for a wooden shelf near his desk.

Ryou watched as the Slave trader searched the shelf for a few moments, before turning, and depositing an old tome on top of his desk.

His curiosity peaked, Ryou approached the desk as the man skimmed through a few pages, before stopping on one in particular with a now-familiar seal on it.

"This…" He pointed a pudgy finger to the symbol on the page, "...is a basic Monster Trainer Seal..." Beloukas explained, before flipping some more pages marking the previous one with his finger, before stopping on another with a similar seal on it, "...and this is a Slave Seal. Do you notice the difference Yuusha-sama?"

Ryou focused his attention on the seals. At first glance, he could see they were very similar, with three interlaced circles, surrounded by an almost complete circle with small coma-like protrusions around it. It took him a few seconds to spot the difference.

"It's the engravings along the circle, they are different on both seals, and the Slave Seal as more of them, right?" Ryou remarked with curiosity.

"Fuee… Monsters and humans are different and have different levels of intelligence, so for human slaves, a more complex seal is needed… Probably..." Rishia commented from his side.

Beloukas nodded in agreement, "It is as the young lady says, for something like Balloons, or Usapils a basic seal is all that's required, but higher intelligence beings might be able to work around the restrictions, so it's necessary to apply a more complex version, the same applies if the monster in question is strong to begin with." Beloukas explained, closing the book.

"So the reason Quartz's seal disappeared, was because it was of low quality huh?" Ryou concluded out loud.

"Pardon me?"

He turned his attention back to the man, "My dragon, her seal disappeared a little after she hatched."

The man's expression when from happy to serious in record time at the information, "That's not completely due to her intelligence, but mostly because she is a Dragon. Even the weakest of dragons could easily break through anything lower than a High-Level Monster Training Seal with sheer brute magical power, though I would advise you to place a seal on her soon…"

"I'm not going to brand Quartz with a seal. She is very well behaved, and if she steps out of line I guarantee you I don't need a brand that tortures people to reel her in…"

Belokas eyed Ryou in silence for a moment, before releasing a sigh, "I won't pry anymore into it, but for your sake, as well as those around you lets hope she remains that way…"

"As I said I don't need a brand to make sure she behaves and if something does arise from it I'll deal with it myself, my way…" Ryou announced with a tone of finality.

"Very well Yuusha-sama." Beloukas,added in a strangely serious tone, before continuing, " But we ventured off-topic. Tell me for what reason do you wish to learn about curse seals?"

"Well…" Ryou shook his head lightly, "...I want to add more fire-power to my party, the problem is that I'm not too keen on using slaves like Naofumi, and finding party members you can trust is not as easy as it seems, henceforth the best option currently is obviously monsters that I can train and use in battle."

Beloukas nodded in understanding, scratching his chin, "I see, you did show interest in Dunes, but like I said they are hardly battle worthy…"

_Pretty sure with the Grow Correction and a few levels I could turn them into something battle-worthy, but that__'s beside the point…_ "Right… The problem with using monsters is how much you need to sustain them. Sure I would love to have two or three more dragons in my party, but already I'm receiving complaints from the hunters in Northern Village about the lack of game, and if what I know from Naofumi's Filorial Queens is true, then probably every omnivorous monster will end up eating enough that just a few of them can destroy an entire ecosystem."

The Slave Trader snapped his fingers, "And so came your interest in Dunes, they sustain themselves mostly on minerals, and that would solve your problem, I see, I see..."

"It's not really the Dunes that I'm interested in…" Ryou began throwing another look at his partner, before scratching his neck. He just knew Rishia was going to have objections.

"No?" Beloukas questioned.

Ryou shook his head, "Rifana mentioned that Dunes were like earthworms, and well… During our expedition in the Northern Cavern we fought a worm-like monster, one that was incredibly strong compared to everything else I have faced until now."

"A worm-like monster in the Northern Caverns you say?" The man's grin returned in full force, "I have no knowledge of such a beast. For sure a new specimen!"

"Fueee! Y-You want to turn one of those worms into a pet?!" Rishia shrieked.

"No…" Ryou hesitated for a moment at the outburst, "...well kinda. You have to admit that thing was pretty strong."

"No!" Rishia exclaimed shaking her head vigorously, her braids swinging from side-to-side, "Take the Dunes! They are cute! That monster is too terrifying!"

"Good!" Ryou scoffed at her words, crossing his arms," We need to add some terrifying to this party. Between you, Quartz and now Rifana we have enough cuteness has it is!"

"Fueee…" Rishia face flushed, but there was no hiding her apprehension.

"So you want to brand one of those worms with a seal is that right?" Beloukas asked.

"Yeah, that's the plan…"

"I wouldn't advise it. There is a reason why we sell most of our monsters as eggs, and that's because there is a bonding process between monster and trainer, and it starts as an egg. If you brand an adult monster it will try to rebel against you, and it would take months for it to obey any orders, if it even survived…" Beloukas explained.

The Bow Hero's shoulders dropped at the explanation. His idea had been to try and knock-out a worm, or weaken it enough to brand it, but it seemed like the plan had been doomed to failure.

"Guess that puts an end to my monster army ambitions for now…" Ryou mumbled dejectedly.

"Perhaps not so…" Beloukas commented, as he walked towards the end of the tent, and made a waving gesture into the darkness. A moment later, a tall figure appeared.

Ryou took in the new arrival. The first thing that stood to sight, were the flat dog-like ears, on either side of the man's head, similar to those of a dog. The next was the man's height that surpassed even Erhard's.

"The young lady mentioned it was ferocious, did she not?"

At the Slave Traders' question, Ryou nodded changing his attention back to the smaller man.

The man in question released a nonsensical noise, scratching his chin once more. "Would you say, that it was unnaturally aggressive? Perhaps it even seemed like it held a grudge?"

Ryou and Rishia looked at each other, before nodding.

"Y-Yes, it kept attacking us even when severely wounded…"

"Yup, at one point it even picked a fight with other monsters and after it came back to attack us…" Ryou answered remembering the underground lake full of Mutated-Kraken like monsters with a shudder.

The demi-human man inclined his head in acknowledgment, "It's more than likely that you accidentally stumbled upon its nest by mistake Yuusha."

Ryou did not miss the lack of honorific, nor the small trace of something on the man's voice as he addressed him, but dismissed it.

"Is that so? It didn't seem like a nest at all…" Ryou countered.

The man crossed his arms over his large chest, one that lacked a slave seal, "You said they were worms. Most likely the eggs are hidden in some tunnel, away from sight."

_There were a lot of tunnels made by the worm we didn__'t explore…_

"This is Jed." Beloukas finally presented the man, motioning with a hand, "He's one of my best bodyguards, but he is also the one who checks the quality of the merchandise I buy. His nose his second to none, he can even differentiate monster breeds while they are still eggs, just by smelling them!"

Ryou eyed the man for a moment, "So that's the plan huh? We take you with us and you'll find us some eggs?"

"If there's a nest, I'll find it no problem." The man declared seriously.

"If it's indeed a new species, I also want to acquire some for myself. I'll make an amazing amount of profit!" Beloukas announced rubbing his hands in glee.

"I know a few Nobles in Zetouble that would love to get there hands on a monster so ferocious that even a Yuusha is wary of them… They would make a killing in the underground coliseums... No pun intended." The man added finishing with a small grin.

"That's nice and all but those things are no joke. If we come across another one I'm not going to be held responsible for anything that happens."

The man's grin quickly changed into a frowned, "Doubtful… If they work like Dunes then they will try to make their nest as far away from each other as possible to ensure their species survival. Minerals like other resources are limited after all."

_Guess if they all made their nest near each other, the small ones would eventually starve to death huh? An interesting piece of trivia there__…_ "Let's hope that's the case, but to be safe I'm getting a few reinforcements."

"Scared Yuusha?" Jed questioned with a hint of condescension.

With half-lidded eyes, Ryou's answer came with a bland tone, "Yeah… Of the fortune your boss will ask of me for compensation if you die…"

The man only scoffed looking to the side.

"I tip my hat to you Yuusha-sama! Thinking on how to avoid paying more than necessary at every opportunity, yes!" Beloukas exclaimed.

Ryou pressed one finger to his ear, and closed his eyes, trying to mute the annoying man. _"Quartz, are you there?"_

There were a few moments of silence, and then…

"_Yes, Onii-shama, Quartz is here."_

"_Where are you now?"_ Ryou asked mentally.

"_Near the mountain, there are more slow monsters here."_ The dragon voice echoed in his mind.

"What is he doing now?" Jed asked with a trace of annoyance.

"Ryou is talking with Quartz-chan," Rishia answered.

"With who now?" The demi-human questioned, tilting his head to the side.

"Miss, you mean the dragon in your party? How is that possible?" Beloukas asked walking closer to Rishia while rubbing his hands.

The girl in question took a few steps back nervously as she answered, "Fuee... Quartz-chan can use telepathy to communicate."

"Marvelous! I never heard of a dragon with such an ability! You must tell me more!"

"Would all of you pipe down, I can't hear her!" Ryou shout echoed in the warehouse, bringing silence into the building.

"_That's good, go to the entrance of the Northern Cave and wait there for us…"_

"_Okay…. Quartz understands…"_

_One of these days I have to test the limits of her telepathy, if it even as one... _With the link broken, he opened his eyes taking in the group looking at him with wide-eyed.

"What?"

It was the Slave Trader who broke the silence, "Yuusha-sama, you must tell me more about your dragon!" He pleaded, quickly making his way towards the hero, only to be stopped by a palm that appeared inches from his face.

"Yeah maybe later, do you want me to get those eggs or not?" Ryou asked with a trace of annoyance. In his opinion the Slave Trader was like his fellow Heroes, only bearable in small doses and already he was reaching the limit of his patience.

With a motion of his hand, the demi-human waved towards the door of the warehouse, "Lead the way Yuusha."

* * *

The mountain range that made up the natural boundary between the Northern Territories and Faubley never ceased to amaze the Bow Hero with its natural beauty. Greystone towered into the heavens, culminating in white peaks that stood above the clouds. Below at their base, there was nothing but green forests, contrasted only by the blue rivers that descend from the mountains.

Finally coming up the base of the mountain directly behind the Northern Village, the great opening of the Northern Cavern came in view, along with a white blob that slowly became more defined.

"I found Onee-shama and Onii-shama," Quartz announced in a soft voice.

"So you did…" Ryou commented with a small smile, petting the dragon on her head. Moving his attention he saw Rifana sprawled on the dragons back, eyes focused on the sky above.

"You okay there Rifana?" Ryou asked slightly worried.

"No… I feel sick..." She moaned.

If I remember correctly Raphtalia had the same problem when riding a carriage, and Quartz does tend to go overboard when hunting…

"You can take a break for a bit, we are walking for the next part."

With a groan the girl rolled off Quartz landing on her back with a dull thud without moving an inch, content on just laying there.

"You okay Rifana-chan?" Rishia asked, coming up to the small demi-human as she sheathed her new-pale blue rapier.

Rishia's new weapon, endearingly named _Dawn Bringer _was a product of Ryou's blacksmith endeavors, and while the enhancements had to be applied by his temporary mentor, the weapon at is base had much better stats than her previous one. The rapier shined with a small blue glow, and on the handle laid a hexagonal _Mascgite crystal_ \- The very same crystal he had collected from the cave, one that not only increased the potency of the girl's spells but also reduced the cost.

That wasn't the only difference on the green-haired girl since she was now doting a new armor made of the same material, also made by Ryou's hand. Unfortunately, the enhancements were also introduced by the blacksmith.

It was something that still irked him. His inability to truly manipulate his own magic. In blacksmithing, as well as other professions, adding magic into ones creations was essential and something that came naturally to most. Ryou, however, was not most people or even born in his current world so the process on how to do it continued to evade him.

His temporary mentor called him a one of a kind prodigy since he had been able to grasp the intricacies of his art in days. Ryou, though, had another name for his so-called prodigious ability.

_Cheating__…_ It all came down to his Legendary Weapon, and its ability to turn something that would take years to master, into a mostly mundane chore. After absorbing some old tools from the shop, and mastering the bows that came from it, Ryou's ability in the art of blacksmith had surged, and he knew by instinct how to hammer something, or the process involved, even if he still kept some notes on what worked and what didn't.

Perhaps the reason he felt irritated with his lack of ability as far as manipulating magic went, could be attributed to how easily everything else became, and he tried immediately to reign in those thoughts because such line of thinking could be a very treacherous one.

"No… I think I might be dying…" The weasel demi-human moaned to Rishia, who begun to fan her face with her hand.

Turning away from the drama occurring, Ryou's eyes went for the male demi-human accompanying his party.

Noticing the gaze on his person, the dog demi-human turned to look at the Bow Hero with narrowed eyes.

"What?"

"Nothing, just wondering why you don't seem to like me…" Ryou shrugged, his eyes going to the entrance of the cave.

"Don't like you?" The man questioned confused before his eyes widened a little and he let out a small chuckle, "Sorry. It's not a question of like or dislike, rather its instinct."

"Hmm? Instinct?" Ryou sent him a side glance.

"Yeah…" The man grabbed a small stone, and after a moment launched it into the opening of the cavern, "...it's the fact that you're a Hero, yet you're not holding a shield kind of thing."

_Ohhh__…_ "Is that normal? I know that demi-humans love the Shield Hero, but you're the first that I met that seemed to dislike the others."

The demi-human grinned slightly at the Bow Hero's words, "They didn't come from Siltvelt, I bet." The man asserted, "Trust me when you spend your entire childhood praying I don't know how many times per day to the Shield Hero, and spending the rest of it hearing everyone cursing the other three, you develop a little bit of passive-aggressiveness towards them."

"Is that the norm in Siltvelt?" Ryou asked with a tilt of his head. From what he had been able to gather both from the Shadow Maid, and his own studies, Siltvelt didn't hold much love for any other Legendary Hero besides the Shield Hero, however, every demi-human he had met seemed at best indifferent to his status.

_Then again, both Rifana and Raphtalia are from Seatto, and Rasha also seemed to be from Melromarc, so it's not like I have lots of experience dealing with Siltvelt Inhabitants__…_

"With the shit going around concerning the Tate-no Yuusha, you would be lucky if you reached the Capital alive. The more fanatical members there wouldn't hesitate in taking out their frustrations on you."

_So basically I would get an even worse welcome then Naofumi did here__… _

"There was a person that advised me to stay clear from there…" Ryou admitted looking towards his party, where Quartz had joined Rishia in fanning Rifana's face with her hand, her head tilted to the side in confusion.

"That's some solid advice Yuusha and you should definitely heed it."

Ryou nodded, before making himself heard, "Alright everyone let's go!"

**Flashback End...**

* * *

"So this is the place huh?" Jed asked looking around, as he sniffed the air.

Ryou shook himself out of his reverie noticing they had finally arrived

Eying the gallery he saw the vestiges of the battle that had ground was littered with crystals, that still emanated with a pale blue light. Part of the far wall was mostly destroyed and blackened from their combination skill, and there was no missing the hole that the worm had melted with its beam attack, along with the one he had crawled from. There were hardly any remains from the worm, as he had expected, the monsters had probably feasted on its carcass, not even leaving it's bones behind.

"Yeah, so what do you think?" Ryou asked.

The demi-human gave a few more sniffs, before nodding, "You have really bad luck or good depending on how you look at it because this is certainly a nest."

"You sure?"

"Yeah, yeah, my nose has never failed me before, just give me a few moments and I'll point you in the right direction." The man announced as he walked away, towards one of the holes.

"Fuee… Your really determined to do this…" Rishia said from his side in a resigned manner.

"Of course I am, we came this far didn't we? Besides even you have to acknowledge those things were pretty strong." Ryou answered.

"That's not what I'm worried about…" Rishia muttered, prompting Ryou to finally look at his partner. Rishia looked at him with a worried glance, her hands clasped in front of her.

"Rish, what's this truly about?" Ryou asked. She never seemed to have a problem with Quartz, so he couldn't understand what was eating at his party member.

"Adding more monsters to our party… Quartz is one thing, she's a dragon… But if people of Melromarc see you, one of the three legendary heroes they worship here deploying them in battle, then…" Rishia explained.

Rifana continued from his side, "The legends always spoke that, the Ken-no Yuusha-sama, Yari-no Yuusha-sama, and Yumi-no Yuusha-sama always had parties of humans. The only hero who made a party composed of Demi-humans and Monsters was the Tate-no Yuusha…"

Ryou's eyes widen a fraction at the information.

_In my hype of having an army of monsters, I never consider the implications that it could have__…_

"You told me that you rejected our Majesty chosen adventurers… If you now appear fighting the wave with a Demi-human, a Dragon, and an army of monsters, what will he think..?" His partner asked lowering her head.

"He probably won't be very happy…" Ryou muttered as he closed his eyes in thought. If he were to appear in the wave with a plethora of monsters rather than humans it would be like a slap in the Old man's face.

_...and it isn__'t just my reputation at stake is it..?_ For now, the powers that be only seemed to think he sympathized with the Shield Hero, but if he continued with actions that were seemed as heretical by the church, they could turn those actions around to serve their purpose and things could get very complicated for Naofumi very fast.

_I can already see it, the church and Malty screaming how the Demon Shield brainwashed me or was manipulated me into siding with him, and do things his way__…_ The thought couldn't even be considered ludicrous, because it had happened when people started seeing the Shield Hero as something other than the demon he had been portrayed as, and already Ryou had laid the foundations for such a thing to happen by publicly defending Naofumi.

"You said the Church was keeping an eye on you, as was the Pope, and he is dangerous… If you keep pushing them then…" Rishia trailed off, her green eyes shining with worry.

"It's true, I never stopped to think what kind of message I would be sending by doing this, but that doesn't mean I should just lower my head, and stop pursuing advantages just because it rubs people the wrong way…" Ryou pointed-out, shifting in place, as a frown took over, "... I have no intention of keeping pussy-footing around just to appease that fanatical cult. Besides Rish do you remember what I told you back then after the duel?"

"_...We are both still too weak to pick doing what is right, over what is smart. For now, the only thing we can do is keep our heads low, and get stronger until we have the strength to be able to choose." _The words echoed in Rishia's head as the memory reached her, and she nodded hesitantly

"Slowly but surely we are getting strong… Soon enough we will be able to cast off the shackles that the church of the three heroes likes to impose. The time where we will be able to choose what we can do will come sooner rather than later. But, if it makes you feel any better, I'll try to keep them out of sight, and only use them if the situation calls for it, okay?" He tried to reassure her.

_I also don__'t want to give the church more ammunition to fire at Naofumi, at least not before he is ready..._

"Fuee… I still don't think this is a good idea, but I guess that's just the kind of person you are..." Rishia mumbled as she sent him a shaky smile.

"Found them, Kid!" A voice echoed from the other side of the chamber, and Ryou saw Jed pointing into a tunnel a few meters above the ground.

Sending one last look to his partner who just waved him off, Ryou hesitated for a moment before making his way to the demi-human.

"In there huh..."

The demi-human nodded, also looking upwards, "Yup that's what my nose is telling me."

In a moment his bow materialized, and Ryou took aim at the entrance of the tunnel, "Chain Arrow!"

The arrow embedded itself in the opening, as a metallic chain dangled from it. Giving it a few pulls to make sure it was secure, Ryou nodded to himself and started climbing.

"Nifty ability…" Jed commented from below.

"Sure is, saved my life a couple of times, and it makes things like this a lot easier…" Ryou commented. In a moment he heaved himself into the entrance of the tunnel before looking down at his party, "Rish, Quartz you stay there with Rifana, while Jed and I go look for those eggs."

Rishia nodded, as her hand fell on the small demi-human girl's shoulder that was looking at him worriedly.

Ryou just sent her a smile, and thumbs up, before turning to the dark tunnel that was soon illuminated by his _Bio-Luminescent Bow_.

"Kid that thing almost seems like a purse from some woman in Nobility, they have everything in there…" Jed commented with amusement shaking his head.

_Haa yes, a woman's purse.. The single most complete pack of daily utensils since the dawn of humanity. You need something, they have it in there, good luck on finding it though__… _Ryou quipped in his head.

They continued their trek through the tunnel for a couple of moments before another obstacle presented itself.

Kicking a rock Ryou watched it tumbled into the vertical hole, a few seconds passed before a a sound of it hitting the ground was heard.

"Well that's one hell of a drop," Jed commented peering into the hole.

"That? Pfff that's nothing, you should have seen the hole I fell into a while ago…"

"Are all the Yuushas as crazy as you?"

"No…" Ryou responded as he released another chain into the ceiling. Turning around he sent the demi-human a smirk, "...they are worse."

"So our chosen saviors are all touched in the head is that it? Even the Tate-no Yuusha?" The demi-human asked.

Ryou chuckled as he climbed down the chain, "You think that you can summon people to fight demons that spawn from cracks in the sky, along with every other piece of insanity that comes our way and have us be a normal, reasonable bunch?"

"When you put it like that…" Jed allowed as he too grabbed the chain and begun climbing down.

"... And as far as the Shield Hero is concerned…" Ryou grinned, "He's the craziest bastard of us all…"

"Lovely…" The demi-human said dryly.

It took nearly two minutes for Ryou to reach the end of the hole, and as he turned around, the light of his bow reflected off translucent orbs against a wall, stuck together by some kind of black membrane, a scene that the Bow Hero could only compare to a horror movie, but even then he found himself grinning slightly, as he saw a thin, snake-like creature slithering inside a pale transparent egg, one of the hundreds.

"Jackpot…"

* * *

Once more darkness was his companion, illuminated by the soft moonlight that pierced through the window, and green curtains. The same light also illuminated the egg. allowing Ryou to watch the creature slowly slithering within - One of the seven, place in an incubator now in his possession. On the outside of the egg, a purple engraving was observable.

It had taken him almost an hour of arguing with Beloukas to be able to get the High-level Monster Training Seals on his monsters for free. The normal price for the service was far from cheap but Ryou had also provided the Slave Trader with eggs that were worth far more, yet the man still wanted to try and have Ryou pay for it.

_A capitalist through and through that one__… _

Rising to his feet, Ryou made his way to his bed and took a seat as he watched the slow rise and fall of the covers, above it only the top half of a head could be seen along with glossy white hair.

With his hand, he gently pushed the hair to the side revealing Quartz's childlike features, her face peaceful. The girl decided that today she would sleep on his bed and when he had asked her about it the girl had only answered she wanted to be close to him. Her words had been spoken blandly as usual from Quartz, but there was no denying the feeling behind it, and Ryou found himself unable to deny her request.

Taking a seat at the bed he sent a side glance to his Status Window, and a moment later his Bow Tree appeared, and with a little searching, two new brackets came into view.

The Slave Bow Series, and the Monster Trainer Bow Series, had been unlocked, from one to three. The bows had been unlocked when he had absorbed the ink to paint the seal.

**[Monster Trainer Bow III - Rarity - Common - Awakened - Equipment Bonus - Monster Grow Correction(High), Monster Grow Adjustment (Medium)]**

The Grow Corrections were truly an almost game-breaking mechanic, especially when combined with his own skill tree. The investment in points he had been making towards his party members would make it so that very soon they would easily surpass most normal people in the world.

But that had also been what Ryou betted on. That both mechanics would empower, not only his current party but the new additions to it too.

_It will take a while before this investment pays off, I__'m going to have to carry them around everywhere, and keep them mostly out of sight, but when they're ready with these many Grow Corrections stacking on top of them, they will become much stronger than the original one, and I will have one heck of an artillery line to deploy..._

Shaking his head to banish the thoughts of giant worms raining death beams on his enemies, Ryou finished undressing his armor before moving under the covers.

It took only a few seconds for him to released a sight as his eyes went to the newest occupant, who was sleeping unaware of the almost oppressive body heat she emanated.

_She really is way to warm..._

* * *

_Two days later__…_

Ryou couldn't help but whistle in appreciation. As he had expected, the small girl jumped from level one to level twelve on the first day, so he had them repeat the process on the second day too.

Since the monsters on the mine were much higher level then the ones on the outside it was no surprise when Rifana level skyrocket yet again coming to a stop at twenty-one much to his amazement. The small demi-human however probably didn't felt the same if the subtle nasty looks she keep sending him were of any indication, the process had come with severe growing pains, something that made the entire thing a not very pleasant endeavor for Rifana.

Training could come later when she had a solid base, for the moment the Mithril Short Sword he had crafted for her would do the job until they reached Zetoble where they could look for more specialized gear. Until then, he would refrain from having the little girl on the front lines, though at the rate she was growing she wouldn't remain a little girl for much longer. She had gained seven centimeters in three days, and definitely had some more muscle on her arms and legs.

Finally satisfied with their current progress Ryou raised from his position on the couch to begin preparations to leave the village that had grown to be like a second home to him.

* * *

The party stood at the gates of Northern Village, and the Bow Hero couldn't help but compare the differences. Unlike last time they now had quite the crowd seeing them off, from the guards to most of the villagers, there were even a few people from Gentlewood Village waving them goodbye.

His attention went to Rishia, who embraced her father, though thankfully there were no tears this time, before picking her backpack and coming to a stop next to him and Quartz who was holding a huge sack on her shoulders, were the eggs currently rested inside their incubators.

"Ryou-sama, once again the best of luck out there, and please keep watching over them…" Almond asked extending his hand to which Ryou clapped his own over, nodding seriously.

"That goes without saying." Ryou declared seriously. That was the one thing he took seriously above all else, the safety of his party.

With one last wave, Ryou extended his hand to the sky before ordering.

"Teleport: Castle Town!" The blue pillar of light came down on them, disappearing a few seconds later leaving no trace of the party.

* * *

_Next Chapter: Back to the beginning..._


	32. Back to the Beginning

**A/N - **Hey guys Godreal is back with another chapter, that unfortunately came a day later, I was going to post it yesterday but got home way to tired to even touch the PC, and went straight to bed, deciding to leave for today.

Nothing much to add, besides the fact that we are on fast track to one of the two high points of this arc, that being the reunion between the heroes, and what will arise from it, also I would like to add that this chapter finally caught up with the intermission, and we are back on track, just to avoid confusion.

Besides that, I did promise a Bow List, and I will add it later, probably Sunday or Monday so for those curious about it, be sure to check it up.

With that said here we go!

Where the party return to Castle Town, Ryou gravelly underestimates the strength of his own curse and Balmus plots...

* * *

**Chapter 32. Braving into a New World: Back to the Beginning**

A great pillar shined with an almost searing blue light for a few moments before dissipating. The moment the teleport had run its course, light rain fell on him, leaving Ryou with a sense of deja vu so great that he turned to look back at the base of the incline they had landed, almost unconsciously.

His eyes surveyed the area and trees beyond it, half expecting a great wolf to burst from the woods, and in a few seconds, he found himself releasing a breath realizing how silly he was being.

_Even if I know I can kill one by slapping it hard enough I guess my subconscious still hasn__'t caught up…_

"Onii-shama it's raining…" Quartz pointed out with a frown, as she tried to protect her hair from getting wet with her bag.

With a side glance, the Bow Hero opened his inventory and pulled out three cloaks from it.

"Is that Castle Town?" Rifana asked, with a hand over her eyes, as she squinted to see the Capital.

"Yeah, that's Castle Town alright," Ryou answered as he handled a cloak to Quartz.

"I thought we would teleport in town, but instead we landed in the middle of a forest and have to walk in the rain…" The small Demi-human complained lightly.

Finishing helping Quartz with her cloak to make sure her more distinct features were hidden, Ryou frowned lightly. "My teleport skill lands us where I registered it. What would you think would happen if a giant pillar of light came crashing down in the middle of the capital?"

"Haa, they might think they were under attack?" She ventured.

"Exactly, especially since my Teleporting ability is different from the other heroes and a lot flashier, besides a little rain won't kill us," Ryou said, walking to the small girl before handing her a cloak," Here put this on, and make sure you pull the hood up and keep your tail hidden…"

The girl pulled the hood over her head, nodding lightly, knowing that it would be better if she didn't advertise the fact she was a demi-human. With that done she once more pulled her bag over her shoulder with some effort.

Seeing the girl struggling with her bag reminded Ryou that they were going to be on the road for a good while, and there was a limit to how much they could carry, even with his inventory.

_Once more I guess I__'ll be taking a page out of your book, Naofumi…_ He concluded before his eyes fell on the smallest member of his party for a moment.

_I wonder if she will have a problem with a carriage?_ The Bow Hero mused before shaking his head, that would be a problem for later.

"Come on let's go…" He ordered, making his way down the incline, his party following behind.

"Fuee… Ryou aren't you going to put on a cloak?" Rishia asked, her eyes almost shining from under her hood.

His lips twitched down before he turned to face ahead, "No… You know I have a bad relationship with cloaks in general…"

"How does that work?" Rifana asked, coming up from the side, peeking at him.

Ryou raised his head slightly, his gaze unfocused, "I almost got killed by one once upon a time…"

"Huh?" Rifana's face went through a few expressions before stopping in incredulously as she blinked at the Hero.

Rishia's hand came forth to try and stop the small giggle as she recalled the story behind Ryou's hatred towards cloaks in general, and that he was somewhat exaggerating the facts.

"Never mind that, weren't you complaining about the rain a moment ago?" He interjected, breaking the demi-human out of her thoughts involving the Bow Hero fighting with a cloak.

"Right, let's get out of this rain!" With those words, the girl hurried her pace towards town.

* * *

By the time the Castle gates came into view, the light drizzle had changed into a full-blown downpour, but not even that made Ryou hasten his steps. In his past life, he would admit he had been quite the delicate flower as far as colds were involved, so much that a couple of drops of rain in his head would be enough he would get one, guaranteed. Now that he was a hero he no longer had to worry about it, so he decided to take his time.

He had sent Rishia, and the rest of his party to Erhard's Shop in order for them to escape the rain, promising he would meet them later, there was, after all, something the Bow Hero needed to do.

His eyebrow went up as he saw a line of guards, almost double the usual amount lined up in front of the gates, with a multitude of carriages parked everywhere.

_From how fancy those carriages are, they belong to nobles__… Is there some kind of party going on?_ Ryou questioned himself, as he reached the gate, and immediately his mood turned sour as he saw a familiar face under the archway of the gate, protected from the rain unlike the rest of the guards, yet looking far from satisfied.

The man's face also turned sour, as if he had swallowed a lemon when he caught sight of Ryou.

"Guh… Yumi-no Yuusha…" The captain of the guard almost hissed.

Coming to a stop a few meters in front of the captain, Ryou eyed the man for a few seconds with a less than friendly stare, even as the rain picked up strength before making his intentions clear, "I'm here to see the King."

The man released another grunt, "Guh… His highness is busy preparing a royal banquet, so you will have to come back later."

_If it was by choice I wouldn__'t put one foot inside the Castle, but this might be my only chance to get information about his vassal weapon before things take a turn for the worse…_

"No can do, I'm going to be away from the capital for a while, so I have to see him now…" Ryou finished as he stepped forward.

In an instant, the captain raised his hand and swords were drawn as some of the guards came forward and formed a semi-circle around him, though the vast majority stood in place their expression mimicking that of Ryou's.

_What the actual fuck?!_ His mouth almost dropped open at the brazen attitude of the guards.

"His Majesty's orders were clear! He is not to be disturbed, especially not by a second rate fake Yuusha like you!" The man hissed, bringing his sword in front of himself in a defensive posture.

_Second Rate?! _The words ran in Ryou's head until they clicked, then he was moving before anyone, even himself rationalized why exactly those words touched him so.

An instant later a hand clapped over the sword's handle preventing it from moving, and the Captain's eyes widened slightly in shock, as a snarling face came to a stop inches from his.

"You have a really short memory, don't you... How about I remind you just how much of a second rate I am?" Ryou snarled in the captain's face, the anger in the hero's voice preventing the guards from moving both from the tone and from the shock of seeing how fast he had crossed the distance.

The man tried to free his sword, his face going red due to the effort but to no avail.

"You…" The man growled as he kept pulling his sword, "...You think just because you have some measure of power that you can do whatever you want in our country?!"

"That's the pot calling the kettle you freaking hypocrite!" Ryou growled back, as he tightened his grip on the handle, "Also let me remind you, that you assholes were the ones who brought me here to save your stupid world while you sit on your ass, so I think I'm at least entitled to some liberties."

"Hah!" The captain was still able to smirk through the effort, "You?! Saving our world?! Don't lie you fake Yuusha! We know all about it! While the Ken-no Yuusha-sama, and the Yari-no Yuusha-sama are dedicated to the betterment of our country, you're up there in no man's land playing around with your green-haired who..! Gah!" The captain didn't finish his words, has his world turned upside down, courtesy of having his feet kicked from under him, not a second later an ungodly force hit him in the stomach sending him flying through the gate and tumbling out into the rain as he crashed against the hard stone.

Opening his eyes the captain coughed as he tried to raise himself but stopped when he felt a shiver running through his body as the air around them grew colder, and he watched the Bow Hero standing above him glaring darkly. The man felt a second much bigger shiver when the young hero's eyes appeared to shine with a red glow, something truly malevolent crossing through them for a brief moment.

"Trash like you telling me I'm a second rate Hero is hilarious, but it's one thing to insult me, however, when you pull those that are closest to me into it, that's a line I won't allow anyone to cross…" Ryou hissed as lightning erupted from his fist and he gave a deliberate slow step closer to the man, "You said that the others are working for the betterment of this country right? Then maybe I should follow their example, and start making this world a better place…" He finished as he gave another step, completely ignoring the black shadows that had begun creeping and eating away at the corner of his sight.

The man crawled back, his legs scraping against the wet stone as he tried to get away from the horrible, and suffocating feeling that surrounded the young man who seemed much more like an apparition than a holy hero.

"_At his level, a single good hit is far more than enough…"_ A distorted voice echoed in Ryou's mind, and the Bow Hero grinned, finding himself agreeing with the voice as he reared his lightning encased fist back.

"What is the meaning of this?!" A voice echoed above the falling rain, one that had the Bow Hero clenching his teeth as he lowered his fist.

"O-Our Holiness!" One of the guards stuttered.

Ryou turned to look back, and he saw a multitude standing behind him under the rain cloaked in cleric outfits, yet his glare was focused on one person in particular.

_That man__…_ Ryou growled in his mind as he eyed the Pope.

"I ask once more what is the meaning of this?" Balmus asked, with a frown.

"The Yumi-no Yuusha has gone insane and is trying to force his way into the castle!" The captain all but shrieked from behind Ryou.

The Pope's eyes moved to the Bow Hero for a moment, before they fell on the captain once more, his frown deepening, "Yumi-no Yuusha-sama is one of the Legendary Heroes protecting this world or have you forgotten?" The Pope's voice was soft yet stern. "They have free reign to meet with his highness whenever they wish. To go against them is to go against the will of God."

"B-But our orders are to not allow anyone to bother his Majesty while he prepares the banquet in your honor!" The Captain exclaimed from his place on the ground.

The Pope shook his head lightly, as a small smile appeared in his face, "Those orders obviously do not apply to our honorable Yuushas; everyone knows that. If this is an attempt at trying to get some measure of revenge, I advise you to go repent…"

The man's face paled even more, and his mouth tried to formulate words to defend himself yet they refused to come out.

"Come Yuusha-sama…" The Pope turned towards Ryou, as he extended his hand, "I as the envoy of God shall personally escort you to his Majesty as a token of apology for this situation."

Ryou clenched his teeth, unable to rationalize anything the man had said as fog filled most of his mind, but something still clicked as his eyes went to the Pope's extended hand.

"_...especially not by a second rate fake Yuusha like you!"_

_Fake Yuusha__… The ones who came up with that title were the church… It was him!_

Bascus eyes widened slightly, as a red glow took over the hero's eyes.

_What are those eyes, and this feeling of malevolence that surrounds him?_ The Pope questioned himself with a hint of apprehension, his arm falling to the side.

"_He doesn't have the replica with him right now, and only a few followers, a couple of shots and you can end it here before everything escalates…"_ The distorted voice whispered entrancingly in the corner of his mind, and with it the rest of his vision was swallowed by darkness, leaving only black shadows…

Shadows that were mocking him…

Shadows that were taunting him...

Shadows that threatened to take what was his away from him…

_Rishia…_

_Quartz…_

_Rifana…_

_They belong to me, and I won__'t let you hurt them you piece of shit!_ Ryou roared into the dark void that had swallowed his mind.

On the outside, all those present, from the clerics to the guards took a step back, as everything from below the Bow Hero's elbow caught on fire, the jewel on his wrist band changing from a soft yellow to an unholy red glow. Even Balmus took a step back as the Bow Hero's head snapped upwards, pupilless glowing red eyes meeting his, as a malevolent grin appeared in Ryou's face.

"Come forth... Bow of…"

"Ryou-sama!"

A voice pierced the veil of darkness, interrupting the Bow Hero's command, as his eyes fell on the newest shadow that appeared similar to all the others, however, there was a sense of familiarity with the witch's hat the shadow was wearing, one that cracked the darkness just slightly enough for him to see a worried face looking at his person.

_Is that..?_

"Rino…" He murmured, his voice sounding far from his normal tone in his ears.

"_You colossal idiot! This is neither the time or place for you to do this so get a fucking grip!" _Another voice that sounded much more like his own echoed in his mind, and almost instantly the darkness disappeared, along with the flames.

Ryou didn't realize he was falling until his knees hit the cold and wet stone, followed by both his hands as a tremendous wave of weakness hit him, one that let him panting for breath as his wide unfocused eyes watched the drops of rain falling from his hair and onto the ground.

"W-What just happened..?" He murmured.

"Are you alright Ryou-sama?"

Turning to look at the side, he saw Rino crouched near him, her face etched in worry, with a few traces of apprehension.

"Rino... What jus…" He trailed off as his eyes caught the jewel on his wrist flashing with a red glow, before returning to its normal color.

_Did I__… Did I almost?!_ The Bow Hero understood then what had almost happened, and he found himself horrified at the prospect. Shaking and taking far too much effort he raised himself to a standing position. It was then that he took note of the crowd around him that was whispering, and sending fearful glances at his person.

_I have to get away from here!_ In a panic he gave a few shaky steps before something caught his sleeve, stopping him in his tracks.

"Ryou-sama what's wrong?" Rino questioned worriedly, from her place near him.

"Don't… Don't touch me!" Ryou shouted, snapping his arm away, a movement that almost sent the petite girl to the ground.

By the time Rino righted herself, she could only watch as the Bow Hero almost stumbled away, slowly disappearing into the rain.

_Ryou-sama__…_ The girl clapped her hands in front of herself, as she looked into the distance. Try as she might she couldn't understand what had happened. She couldn't connect the kind and gentle hero that had helped her, with whatever had been standing there. There had been a horrible feeling of pure hatred mixed with something equally evil she couldn't identify, but she knew one thing, whatever had taken over the young man in those moments didn't felt human, and it had scared Ryou far more than it had scared everyone else.

Her thoughts were interrupted as she gave a small jump when a hand fell on her shoulder.

"Easy there Rino-chan. What got you so spooked?"

Turning to look at the owner of the hand, she had to raise her head, to look into the confused eyes of the Spear Hero.

"Motoyasu-sama…" She uttered almost breathlessly.

He gave her a small smile, before his head tilted slightly to the side, "So what happened? Everyone's in a fuss…"

Rino found some heat going to her cheeks against her will as the handsome Hero focused his attention on her before the reality of the situation crashed once more.

"Haa… Ryou-sama was here, but there was something wrong with him…" She trailed off.

_Huh? Something wrong with Ryou?_ Motoyasu's smile disappeared from his face, as a more worried expression took over.

"What do you mean Rino-chan?" He asked as his other hand went for her shoulder.

"I…" She stopped as she bit her lip, "I'm not sure... But he didn't seem like himself."

"Didn't seem like himself?" Motoyasu wondered out loud.

"Yes, it almost seemed like he was poss…" Rino began but was interrupted by another voice that pierced through the sound of the falling rain.

"Motoyasu-sama, everything is ready!"

The Spear Hero sent a small smile towards Melromarc's Princess, "We will be right there!" He exclaimed over his shoulder.

Looking back towards Rino, neither saw the expression on Malty's face turn from pleasant into a glare as she watched the scene with nothing but contempt.

"He probably is just having a bad day, and this weather doesn't really help. I know you're worried, I'm too but we have a village to save." Motoyasu concluded before grabbing the petite mage's hand and guiding her to where the rest of his party was waiting.

Rino's expression turned conflicted, as she turned back to look one final time to where the Bow Hero had disappeared.

_Ryou-sama__…_

* * *

"Your Holiness… Are you… Are you alright?" A sister asked, from his side, yet Balmus hardly paid any attention to the woman, completely focused on the road that led to the peasant area of Castle Town, the one where the Yuusha had disappeared.

Looking down he clenched his hand into a fist yet even that had not been enough to stop it from shaking.

_Am I afraid?_ He wondered in disbelief.

_Me? The one was chosen by God afraid of a small child?! Preposterous!_ Balmus roared in his mind trying to make the feeling subside.

"My holiness…" The sister tried once more, yet she quickly backpedaled as the head of the church focused a glare on her person.

"Can't you see I'm thinking, why are you bothering me so?" The usual pleasant tone in the man's voice had disappeared, replaced with one that almost brimmed with anger.

"I-Its just…" The woman stuttered under the man's glare, whose patience finally ran out.

"Out with it!" Balmus thundered making every one of his escorts lower his head.

It was a plain man taking pity on the woman who seemed about to wet herself that answered, "Balmus-sama the banquet is about to start, we shouldn't leave his Majesty waiting."

The Pope took a breath to calm himself, as he adjusted his glasses trying to regain his composure. As much as he hated it, he had to keep the pleasantries and entertain their foolish king at least until everything fell in place.

"No, we shouldn't." He allowed, his face going passive once more, as he turned and slowly made his way into the castle, the bishop following close behind.

"You seem rather shaken Balmus-sama." The Bishop murmured, as they moved inside the Castle and away from the rain.

"Nonsense, I was just caught off-guard that's all," He answered smoothly.

"We all were… I never thought that a fake Yuusha could exclude such an ominous presence."

_Indeed__…_ Balmus eyes narrowed almost imperceptibly. While on the outside he was the complete image of normalcy, on the interior his mind was racing.

_Where did that child obtain such an ominous power?_ The head of the Church didn't understand the change that had happened. While he knew that they were the real Yuusha's, and not fakes as some people were beginning to believe due to the information that was slowly spreading across the court, courtesy of his followers, none of the old surviving texts mentioned anything about the foolish Heroes possessing such a foul power.

That wasn't the only change he had sensed in the hero. During their first meeting, he noticed how defensive the young man had been, something that had prickled at the corner of his mind, but more importantly, the young man had been afraid of him. Balmus had almost laughed when he realized it. One of the heroes of legends, afraid of him? The thought had been almost as amusing, as it had been offensive.

However, in this new meeting, something had drastically changed in the Yuusha. He hadn't been afraid of him. No… More than the ominous, foul presence and power that had been slowly boiling inside the hero, there had been another feeling.

_Bloodlust__… _The young man had been out for blood. First for the captain of the guard, and then the feeling had intensified itself to much greater heights when he had made his presence known.

For some reason, the Bow Hero hated him, and it made his suspicions even more prevalent. His suspicion that that wretched Mirelia was keeping a far closer eye to what was happening in her country then he previously thought.

_Yes... It all makes sense now__…_ The Pope concluded. For what reason would the Bow Hero have to be wary of him and out for his blood?

_None__… Not unless he was tipped off…_ The spies he had in the Queen's Shadow's had informed him that their captain had taken a shine at the Bow Hero. No doubt Mirellia had already spread her sweet honey all over the Hero through her Shadows and had informed him of her suspicions towards their esteemed church.

_She truly lives up to her title of Melromarc Vixen__… Miles away, with the leaders of every country breathing down her neck, and she can still turn one of the Yuusha's into her lap dog…_ The Pope shook his head, as he waved at some nobles, yet his mind was still on the problem at hand.

From what his spies had informed him, the Queen was slowly but surely finding some common ground with the rest of the world leaders, and if left unchecked she would resolve the issue sooner rather than later, and then she would return home.

_We can__'t have that happening, not before I solidify my power._ He had to find a way to keep the Queen tied and away from Melromarc for longer. If she were allowed to return, she would not only solidify her position but would probably take the Shield Demon as well as the other heroes into her bosom, making them all but untouchable.

_That cannot be allowed to happen__…_ He had tried to coerce the three heroes into his side, but it had already become quite clear that the Bow Hero had no wish of following the righteous path that was laid before him, and if the rumors were true it appeared that neither did the Sword Hero.

_To reject my will is the same as to reject the will of God, and the price for such a sin must be paid in full__…_ He acknowledged in his mind, putting on a benevolent smile as he waved towards Idol Rabier, one of the few that knew what true order in this world should look like, and worked tirelessly to try and achieve it as he lay down heavenly punishment on those despicable demi-humans.

Out of the three heroes, there was only one that seemed to be more than happy to follow the path they were supposed to, and that was the princess's lap dog.

_Although he couldn__'t even defeat that Demon and said demon can't even go on the offensive, that makes him mostly worthless…_ With that in mind, there was still room for improvement, and as long as he was under the princess's thumb, and she was under his, he would leave the Spear Hero be.

_I suppose we must hasten our plans, still, I need to find a way to tie Mirellia until then__…_ He finished before his eyes narrowed as an image of red pupilless eyes appeared in his mind.

_...especially if we ended up summoning two Demons under the guise of Yuushas instead of just one__…_

* * *

Releasing an annoyed sigh, the huge man laid his chin on his hand, as his eyes moved to take in the intruders that had come into his store. The green-haired one, the only one that he had been introduced to, kept looking at him with a small smile, her hands clapped in front of herself, almost everything in her screaming innocence… The keyword being almost. If Erhard was any other man, he would have missed the small traces of shadows in her eyes. It wasn't just that, but the way she now carried herself had changed slightly, no longer hunching, while still looking meek, her shoulders stood straight like those of a warrior.

_Leave it to the Bow Kid to make this kind of change happen, already I saw the change in the little one that follows the Shield Kid like a puppy, and now this lass is also looking like a warrior, and I reckon that spring has come for her too__…_

Erhard released another annoyed sigh, "Seriously... Back in my adventurers days things never went this smoothly for me, these kids sure have it nice."

"Fuee… Erhard-sama, you were an adventurer?" Rishia asked.

The blacksmith's chin almost hit the counter, "Hey now, none of that honorific's business, Erhard is just fine." He waved his hand, before coughing into his fist, "That being said… I know that the kid isn't one to do it, but this time it seriously seemed like he sent you guys here to brag!"

"Brag?" Rishia tilted her head in confusion. Ryou hardly ever bragged, if anything he was quite down to earth.

"Never mind… So who are these little ladies anyway, and where the heck is that rotten kid? Leaving you kids to walk alone especially in this weather, who does that..."

"Hehe… Right! This here is Quartz-chan." She announced pointing to the small white-haired girl, who looked at the Blacksmith with curiosity.

"...and this here is Rifana-chan…" Rishia pointed to the demi-human, who pulled her hood lower to hide her face but still raised a hand slightly in a greeting.

"I see…" Erhard murmured as his eyes fell on the golden-eyed girl, having a pretty good idea why she was making such an effort to hide her head.

"Fuee… As for Ryou, he went to the Castle to talk with his Majesty."

"Fair enough, and so he sent you here to hide from the rain is that it?" He asked, and grumbled as the girl noted.

_Why is it that nowadays everyone thinks my store is some sort of Inn__…_ Erhard thought annoyed. Not only that, the two heroes that showed patronage to his store, only seemed to come accompanied by cute girls too.

_If I didn't know any better I would almost believe those crazy rumors__…_ The blacksmith complained as something shiny caught his eye from under Rishia's cloak.

"Hey, is that a new armor you have under there?" He questioned as he straightened himself.

Rishia looked down, and indeed her mithril armor was peeking from under her cloak. Raising her arm, the cloak followed, showing the blue-tinted armor to the Blacksmith, who whistled in appreciation.

"Would you look at that, you're wearing some fancy armor if I say so myself." He complimented, as he came around the counter to get a better look.

"Y-Yes, this is my Mithril Armor."

"I can see that. Mithril is one level above Magic Steel, so it's better than pretty much anything that I have for sale currently, and the craftsmanship is pretty good too. Where did you get that one?"

"Fuee… Ryou made it, he had a few blacksmithing lessons." Rishia explained.

_Made it himself?! A few blacksmithing lessons?! What is it with these kids?! First, they are surrounded by cute girls, then they can craft items that would take years upon years of practice in a few weeks? I feel like I__'m losing something here…_ Erhard complained in his head but was interrupted when the door to his shop opened once more.

Everyone's eyes fell on the shadow, that was dripping water everywhere, with eyes hidden from view, as it closed the door behind him and leaned against it.

"Fuuee! Ryou what's wrong?!" Rishia exclaimed as she quickly made her way next to the Bow Hero, before releasing a gasp as he raised his head.

"Kid, you look like you've seen a ghost," Erhard commented as he took in the young man's appearance.

Besides being soaked to the bone, the Bow Hero looked pale as a sheet, yet his eyes focused solely on the blacksmith.

"Erhard… Where can I buy a carriage?" The Bow Hero asked, his voice hardly above a whisper but conveying a level of seriousness completely unlike his normal tone.

The Blacksmith frowned, but answered nonetheless, "At the Stables, they sell them there, it's right next to the West Gate... But why do you need a carriage all of a sudden?"

"Because we are leaving Castle Town right now," Ryou announced as he dislodged himself from the door.

"Already? But I wanted to see more of Castle Town…" Rifana complained in a murmur, looking down.

"Seriously kid? You disappear for this long, then come back, just to leave in a hurry?" Erhard questioned slightly annoyed, as he rubbed the back of his head, "Almost seems like you're running away from someone…"

"_Ohh he is… He royally fucked up this time and now he's trying to run from himself, as stupid as it sounds…"_ A voice echoed from inside Ryou's mind, making him grit his teeth.

"_Shut up! This happened because you gave me shitty information, to begin with!"_ Ryou roared back in his mind.

"_How so?"_ The voice asked with a hint of sarcasm.

"_You said you guys were putting a lid on it! I never thought the Curse Series would creep on me like that!"_

"_If I remember correctly we also told you that just because we could shut it down, to not take it as any measure of control! Just because we are actively stopping it from exploding didn't mean that you could lower your guard! We also told you to not underestimate them, and to not compare yourself to Naofumi's case! This? All of this is your own goddamn fault, and you have no one to blame but yourself!"_ The voice raged back making Ryou wince visibly.

"_The both of you might want to stop this unproductive debate, your party is already looking at you like you grew a second head, and I'm pretty sure Quartz can hear us…"_ Another voice interject, one that Ryou could identify as Pride, yet the moment the message registered, Ryou snapped back to reality just in time to see Quartz jumping slightly as if startled.

"Shit!" Ryou cursed, ignoring the chuckles that ran through his mind.

"Onii-shama, why are there three of you?"Quartz asked her eyes wide as saucers.

"Three of him? What do you mean?" Rifana asked, her eyes narrowing slightly as she looked towards the Bow Hero.

"Never mind that,! We have other things to worry about right now!" Ryou declared putting an end to the conversation for the time being.

"_Yeah… Like the fact that if the Pope wasn't already suspicious of you, now you can bet he will be on our ass like a bloodhound…"_

His hand came to rub his face, already feeling the mother of all headaches forming, "Look…" Ryou started, taking a moment to recollect himself, "...something happened, and we need to leave like right now, I can explain later!"

"Fuee… D-Did you get into a fight with his Majesty?" Rishia asked worriedly.

"_Worse I would say…"_

"Later Rishia,.." Ryou growled out, before taking a breath and opening his inventory. Hand reaching forward he pulled a pouch from it and threw it towards Erhard who caught it.

Opening the pouch the Blacksmith's eyes widened slightly at the content, "Kid… What do you need that's worth ten gold coins?"

"A service."

"What kind of service is worth ten gold coins?" Erhard asked suspicion evident on his face.

Ryou looked at the Blacksmith for a moment. This had been the reason why he had come to Erhard in the first place, and what after had happened he would definitely need every advantage he could get.

"I want you to lend me every bow you have in stock."

"_About goddamn time…"_

"Huh?"

* * *

After leaving Erhard's store, the party had quickly made their way into the stables where Ryou had purchased a simple wooden carriage, nothing too complex, just enough to keep them somewhat protected from the rain and to allow them to carry more loot that they would surely find.

A few minutes later they were cruising through the landscape, as Quartz pulled the carriage somewhat against her will, but it couldn't be helped. Ryou had to get as far away from Castle Town as possible, for more reasons than one.

Looking back from his place at the front of the carriage, he looked inside to see both Rifana and Rishia who seemed to be mulling over something in silence, though the Bow Hero had a pretty good idea what was running through their minds.

Looking towards the front, he realized that light was becoming a scarce resource as the clouds slowly became darker, illuminated only by flashes of light in the distance. Even if Quartz had an amazing night vision, it would be dangerous for them to travel during the night, especially since they were about to hit a mountain range, and it was still raining.

"Quartz, we will stop for the night as soon as we find a good place to rest. Okay?" Ryou shouted as he blinked his eyes to get rid of the excess of water.

The dragon turned her head slightly to look at him and bobbed it in agreement before focusing on the path ahead.

There were advantages to having a dragon pulling a carriage instead of filorials. One of those advantages was that all fauna that might have entertained the idea of attacking them, quickly scurried away at the sight of Quartz, and the slightly braver monsters only lasted until she roared.

Eventually, Quartz was able to find a good-sized clearing somewhat away from the main road and protected by a pair of giant trees. After stopping for the night, the dragon quickly reverted back to human form, and after an interesting appliance of fire magic, she was dry and was snuggling in her sleeping bag besides Rishia and Rifana.

Sending them one last look, Ryou jumped from his position and landed soundlessly on the wet ground, before beginning a small trek through the trees, as his mind went to the events that had led him to run away from Castle Town.

Try as he might, he couldn't figure out what had truly set off his curse, and why it had swallowed him so fast. A simple insult from the Captain of the Guard had been enough for him to decide to murder the man.

_No matter how much of a piece of shit he is, that__'s no excuse…_ Ryou thought mournfully. However, that hadn't been what had spooked the Bow Hero so much. What truly had frightened him, had been how susceptible he had been to it along with how he had decided that murder was a reasonable course of action for such a small thing and the fact that he never even realized what was happening until after it was over.

_Seriously Ryou did you expect a pop-up window saying you were being possessed or something?_ He thought with a humorless snort.

The situation had escalated even more with the appearance of the Pope, the one person Ryou wanted to stay away from and the one he had almost started a fight with.

"_He didn__'t have his pretty little toy with him, so in hindsight, you could have totally taken him, the problem would have been the massive casualties that would result from it, especially since you were right by the Castle that was full to the brim with guests."_ Supplied Pride from the corner of his mind and Ryou nodded to himself half-mindedly, as he clenched his fist.

_If Rino had been only a few moments later__…_ Ryou tried to stop his train of thought there, making a small note to seriously apologize to the petite mage that had all but stopped him from creating a catastrophe of massive proportions.

How many innocent people would have perished at his own hand before being subdued, and that was working under the assumption that he could even be stopped at all.

"_Doubtful, unless Aultcray got his ass off his throne to stop you, and that is if his strength is equal to that of Glass, something that we can all agree isn't very likely. The most likely scenario is that we would have pulled the plug on you, but that would take time, and during that time..." _Pride let the statement hang in the air.

Ryou's thoughts went back to the beginning and he once more questioned the thing that was eating away at him.

"_How exactly did this happen? There were plenty of other times that I have gotten angry and it never escalated, but it only took an insult from that guy for me to want to kill him…"_

There was a moment of silence, and Ryou could almost picture his counterpart rubbing his chin before he answered.

"_True… But how many times have you gotten truly angry after our last meeting? None, that how many. This was the first time that you have gotten pissed off after consciously knowing you had awakened your Curse Series…" _

"How is that even relevant? Me knowing about it I mean?" Ryou asked out loud, as he leaned his head back, feeling the droplets as they hit his face.

"_As with everything that surrounds your Legendary Weapon, it's a question of belief. Believing in something makes it stronger, and in this case, it became a double edge sword, because knowing and believing you have the Curse Series, also made them stronger, though that's only a small part of it…"_

Closing his eyes, Ryou let himself be immersed in the feeling, as water ran down his body, almost cleansing it from something impure.

"So what's the big part then?"

"_How did Naofumi reign in his own Curse?"_ His counterpart asked suddenly, making Ryou open his eyes briefly.

"Err… Fitoria put a lid on it if I recall correctly?" Ryou half-answered, half-asked.

"_...And before that?"_

Ryou scratched his head in thought, trying to recall how exactly Naofumi had more or less controlled his Wrath, a moment later an image appeared in his mind. One with a demi-human girl, very familiar to him, crouched with one knee on the ground, one hand over her breast where her heart lay, with a small smile on her face.

"_If you still cannot believe my word, then place the seal on me once again, and allow me to become your sword once more, one that will follow you through fire and brimstone if needed."_

Ryou's eyes widened slightly as the memory appeared, pushed to the front of his mind thanks to his counterpart.

"_Every human needs a pillar of support... That pillar can be many things... A hobby, vacations, a vice, like smoking or drinking, or sometimes it can be something much more simple and yet complex, like a single person believing in you, and as unreal as it sounds, knowing what you know about Naofumi, you know that to him, she is worth more than any amount of money and became the small light of hope, and the pillar he needed…"_ Pride explained, almost softly.

"Is that really a thing?" Ryou whispered out loud. The thought of something like feelings, giving someone strength just sounded so cliché and straight out of fantasy in his mind, yet it was something that against all reason could be observed as far as Naofumi went, the same could be applied to the power of belief.

"_Once more you're looking at this from the wrong angle. It's not about feelings like friendship or love giving you power, though you can't discount the possibility, but it has more to do with one countering the bad things that happen in life with the good. This is true everywhere where humans exist, and you know the consequences of not doing so personally don't you?_"

Ryou did indeed know that as a fact. After his parents had died he had cut off all the connections he had, isolating himself in a cocoon where only sadness and hatred for the situation he lived existed. Eventually, it became too much, and he went out to restart his relationship with his sister, his only immediate living family, but by then a lot of damage had already been done.

"_It's a balancing act… Humans that fail to do it tend to fall into despair, which sometimes leads to a worst-case scenario… In our old world, you only need to look at the suicide statistics to get a clue, in this one, however, you turn into a literal bomb that has the potential to take out everything around you, but in both worlds, there is one thing that remains true, and that is if one is swallowed by despair it might very well lead to a tragedy, that's all there is to it…"_

That at least made sense in Ryou's mind, however, that still begged the question.

"Are you saying that I too need a pillar?"

Whatever answer Ryou had been expecting, it definitely wasn't the chuckle that echoed in his mind, making the Bow Hero narrow his eyes in aggravation.

"Did I say something amusing?" Ryou asked with a bit of heat.

"_No, you just said something amazing that's all. It makes me wonder how it is that if at the base of it all we are essentially the same person, you always fail to grasp the simple, and obvious things even when they are literally in your face."_ There was no denying the amusement both in the voice and in the alien fog that permeated his mind.

"_He is a goddamned idiot, that's what he is. At this point, I think when we were created we took every ounce of intelligence in that brain and left only idiocy behind…"_ Another similar voice snarked.

Ryou was about to address exactly how he felt about Wrath's opinion, but the sound of a twig crunching, had him turning around.

"Ryou…" The voice whispered as the person in question came from behind the tree.

Water continued to pour from the heavens down on the ground, as the person gave a few more steps, her once green hair, almost seemed black due to the lack of light, and with how drenched it was. Her fringe clinging to her forehead, as water ran down her face, passing through lips that were locked in a worried expression, before dripping from her chin.

"Rish…" Ryou found himself uttering her name, almost breathlessly. He couldn't quite pinpoint what exactly made his partner so alluring and breathtaking at that moment, but he found himself unable to look away from her eyes.

"_That's right… You already have a pillar that supports you just like Naofumi, you had for a while now… In the absence of that pillar, the Curse Series rage forth, but it's also those pillars that allow a hero to reign them in... A Shield is nothing without his Sword, but the same can be said about both of you... "_

"_After all… What is Ryou Takuma, the Yumi-no Yuusha without his Partner…_

* * *

_Next Chapter - Towards Ehrenhalf Village_


	33. Towards Ehrenhalf Village

**A/N-** I'm back with a new chapter, and a rather lengthy one, or rather the biggest one up to date.

Now I must apologize for not updating the Bow List, but I was hit with a moment of inspiration for this chapter, and just started writing in immediately after posting the last one, so instead I included the Bow List in this one at the end.

As usual my story is spiced with a mixture of heaviness and humor and this one is no different. This chapter also introduces a new and interesting character to the mix.

Without further ado here we go. Where Ryou as a much needed conversation with Rishia, and his new pets hatch, Rifana starts her rebellious phase, Motoyasu does what he does best, Naofumi as a small measure of sweet revenge, and Ren plans for the future but can't seem to keep is composure when alone with someone of the opposite gender.

* * *

**Chapter 33. Braving into a New World: Towards Ehrenhalf Village**

"_Rish…"_

He continued to observe his partner as she stood just a few meters from him. Worry danced in her eyes, but there was something else lingering in them, something he couldn't identify.

The girl took a few more steps until she was right in front of him, and he realized then that she was quite clearly frowning.

"R-Ryou what happened in Castle Town?" She asked, her lips trembling slightly.

"I… I don't..." The Bow Hero started, but the words failed him. Closing his eyes he rubbed his face, as he gathered himself. His knee reaction would have been to deflect and keep everything to himself, but that had been what had landed him a pair of curses to begin with, and his partner deserved better from him.

Taking a deep breath Ryou steeled himself, "Sorry Rish. It's hard to explain, mostly because things just started to spiral out of my control without me even noticing…"

"_Heh…"_ The snort that came from his mind hardly helped, and Ryou wondered what exactly was it, that Pride found so amusing, but decided to ignore it.

"I… I know that your meeting with his highness went badly," She pointed out softly, " You came back really shaken."

"The meeting…" He hesitated for a moment, "...it never happened, I never got to meet him.

"What, but then…" She started, but Ryou raised a hand to stop her from interrupting.

"I never got to meet him, because I was blocked at the gates by the captain of the guards or knights or whatever he is." He explained, his eyes narrowing slightly as he recalled what exactly the man had hinted to, yet there was no heat like before, only some cold fury.

Rishia's eyes widened a fraction as she recalled the man that had caused more destruction to Lute village than the wave itself. The person that the young man in front of her had all but assaulted. While she still didn't believe that had been the best course of action, somewhere deep down she knew it had been deserved, not for the wound he had inflicted on her, but for the damage caused needlessly.

She wasn't stupid, she knew what the attack had been about. The target had never been Ryou or her for that matter, the knights never have launched the attack if they had known back then there was another Yuusha there. No, the target had been the Tate-no Yuusha-sama, Naofumi-sama, likely in a ploy to injure the Tate-no Yuusha under the pretext of helping the village.

_Injure or worse__…_ She concluded quietly to herself.

A splashing sound caught her attention, as the Bow Hero paced slowly around the clearing.

"He did it out of revenge for sure." Ryou stated, "But he went way too far, and for that matter so did I…"

A small shiver passed through her body, one that had nothing to do with being completely soaked.

"R-Ryou… W-What did you do?" She asked, a tremor breaking into her voice.

"I…" The Bow Hero vacillated for a moment, "...I almost killed him Rishia."

"K-K-Kill?"She stammered in a high pitch, as she took a step backward on instinct.

Ryou noted her reaction with a hint of sadness, but he found that he couldn't blame the girl at all, he had also been terrified by what he had almost done.

"Things escalated way too quickly, and I completely lost myself… I was almost swallowed by the curse series without even realizing…" Ryou admitted in a murmur.

_Curse Series? _She questioned herself. She knew that Ryou used that particular term, series, quite frequently. He usually used it to describe the branches on his weapon tree window that made up a specific class of bows. The curse part was self-explanatory to her. In her college days, she had a few classes on curses, from seals to magic, even alchemy, however, she also remembered quite clearly a very serious warning her teacher had given on the subject.

_Curses no matter in what form are inherently evil, some even have the power to warp your mind in such a way you will no longer be who you once were, and even if they grant you something you desire they always come with a very steep price attached__… I pray that none of you is stupid enough, to find out what that price is, for even the mildest ones will eventually have you wishing you never evoked them…_

As she recalled the warning, everything aligned itself in her mind, and the green-haired girl felt herself growing even colder.

"R-Ryou, by series, you mean an entire branch of Cursed Bows..?" She asked in a low tone.

The Bow Hero could only offer a slow, solemn nod.

_How can it be..? The Yuusha__'s were herald as saviors of the world… Their power is nothing short of heavenly, so how can they be beholden to something like a curse? _

Nothing in the stories portraying the Heroes had ever mentioned them having an evil power. The only thing close to _Evil _on the Heroes were Melromarc's religion holy doctrine, and that was mostly regarding the Tate-no Yuusha, something she knew now by heart not to trust.

As she searched her mind she recalled another memory.

**_Flashback_**_**...**_

_"But you are one of the Legendary Heroes!" _

_"Then let me ask you__… What exactly are the Legendary heroes?" _

_"The Legendary Heroes, are the great heroes who have and will fight to defend this world from the calamities." _

_"Raphtalia, your view about the Heroes is inherently wrong, even more so if you're comparing us to the ones of legend." _

_"Naofumi's right. This goes for both of you. Your expectations of us are based on legends from the past. However, your forgetting that we are not those heroes... Before this, we were only normal humans, far less remarkable than the both of you..." _

_"Raphtalia... Rishia... You're making us out to be saints, but at the end of the day we are only humans, and we come with all the faults that humans have. I for one am full of faults, but you know what? I'm fine with that, I don't want to be a saint, and I never proclaimed myself to be a hero, I'm just some guy with an overpowered bow trying to survive."_

**_End of Flashback..._**

_That__'s right…_ Ryou as always been saying it… She realized, as a more recent memory reach her.

**_Flashback_**_**...**_

"_Rifana… Let me impart to you something I told Raphtalia a while ago… Whatever it is that you read in stories pertaining to us heroes is most likely inaccurate, and if you place us on a pedestal, I guarantee you, you will be left disappointed. Heroes in tales are amazing right? Here though? We are just human and full of flaws."_

**_End of Flashback..._**

Shaking her head, she took in the young man in front of her, the one that had herald so much change in her life, and had given her the power to fight, and to become a better person… His shoulders were slumped, like the weight of the entire world was resting on them.

_And it is isn__'t it..?_ She understood then, the true meaning behind his words, and the reason why he had rejected his honorable title, time and time again, downplaying it as something far less remarkable then what she had been taught since birth.

She took another look at the Hero that stood there alone with his thoughts.

_Her Hero__…_ She admitted privately to herself. Yet for all that Ryou had done, now looking at him she was reminded that the same blood that coursed through her veins, also coursed through his too. He wasn't all that older than her, and yet he had to carry the burdens of the world on his shoulders.

He was a human being before being a Hero like he had always said, and he was as flawed as she was. He had weaknesses like everyone else and was not completely righteous like the legends portray him to be.

"Only human…" She remarked silently, before her voice gained strength, "I finally understand the meaning behind your words."

Ryou raised his head slightly, as he blinked, "What words?"

"Fuee! You were always saying that you were... That all Yuushas are only human, I finally understand what that truly meant!" She exclaimed as she clapped her hands.

Ryou for his part couldn't quite grasp why the girl's mood had changed so quickly, from fearful, to almost excited, especially taking into consideration the current topic.

"Fuee… Black and white and everything in between. That is what makes us human! We spent so much time idolizing the Yuushas that it became almost second nature to think of you as something above humanity, as something flawless, but that's wrong!" She continued as she took a few steps towards him.

Ryou continued to blink wondering were his partner was going with her reasoning. He almost took a step backward, when she came to a stop centimeters from him, and both her hands clapped on his right one. He also had to fight off a very inappropriate heat that rose to his cheeks, when she rest her hands, and by consequence, his own on her chest.

"Everyone can have good thoughts, but we also have bad ones. We can do good things, but we can also do bad ones… Humans are flawed like you always said, and so are the Yuushas, and by that logic so are the weapons that the four of you wield…" She paused, as her eyes fell on his wrist.

With one finger she traced the outer edge of the Jewel engraved in his wrist band, and much to his surprise the round gem shined lightly, with a pale yellow glow.

Deep down Ryou felt something emanating from his Legendary Weapon, he couldn't quite grasp the meaning but there was a feeling of approval like Rishia had just passed some unseen test. As she removed her finger, both just stood there watching, captivated as it glowed softly with the same yellow light for a few moments before fading.

Shaking her head, and pushing away the thoughts of the strange phenomenon, Rishia, raised her head to look at him, a look both soft and stern at the same time, " The Legendary Weapons are the instruments used to defend this world, but if they are wielded by humans, then the same probably applies to them. They can have their good side, and they can have their bad side… Or if they are blessed weapons, they can also become cursed ones… Right?"

Ryou blinked a few more times as he looked at his partner in a newfound light. A tug on his lips, had him offering a small yet content smile, "I'm sorry Rish, it appears that I keep forgetting how smart you are."

She shook her head, "N-No, it took me this long to truly understand...I'm the one who is sorry…"

"Don't be…" Ryou answered, as his shoulder straightened, "Well, it isn't as simple as that, but you got the gist of it."

Her expression changed into a more serious one as she released his hand, watching it fall to his side for a moment, "You said that you were almost swallowed by it… What kind of curse is it exactly?"

Releasing a sigh, he rubbed his head, as he looked upwards, noticing the rain had stopped falling somewhere during their conversation, "To begin with, it isn't just a single curse. I actually have two. Wrath and Pride, and they are exactly what their name implies. Curses born from those feelings, or sins if you will."

_Pride_? She could somewhat understand the Wrath one. She knew the young man in front of her hadn't lived the best of lives, coupled with his burden she could understand, and no matter how much she wanted to deny it, she had seen signs of it. Nevertheless, she couldn't connect him with the sin of Pride at all.

"Why Pride? You are hardly ever prideful…" She murmured, as her face slowly scrunched with confusion.

"Yeah, I'm still trying to wrap my head around that one, and figuring out where exactly it came from. All I know is that they were created when I was summoned to this world, so the feelings behind them came with me, and attained a new form when in contact with the Legendary Bow." He explained as he mused over another fact for a moment, "They also gave birth to two annoying voices in my head by the way."

"Two voices?! You mean the curses are sentient?!" She all but screeched in fear.

"No, not quite Rish. These voices belong to, for a lack of a better explanation, split personalities. They call themselves Wrath and Pride, but I think of them both as gatekeepers for my curses." Ryou finished. While he still hadn't discovered what they were exactly, he knew they were far more than what their name implied, and it showed in their interactions.

Rishia took in is words, and her eyes lit up in understanding, "Fuee! That's why Quartz-chan asked why there were three of you!"

His lips tugged again, but he nodded nonetheless, "Yeah, I guess her telepathy works on the same frequency as my inner thoughts or something."

She peered at him, her face stopping just shy of his, eyes shining with curiosity, "Can they hear us?"

Ryou swallowed in dry almost imperceptibly, as his eyes went just an inch lower to get sight of a pair of small rosy lips for a moment before his brain caught up with what he was doing, and they immediately snapped back to her eyes.

"_If I say yes will the both of you stop with all this sap, and cutesy atmosphere?_" Pride complained from within,_"I mean, with the heartfelt speeches, holding hands, you getting a very nice feel, and not to mention whatever was going inside your head just a moment ago, I'm at serious risk of developing diabetes you know…_"

"_Screw you!"_ Ryou growled as he felt his face grow hotter once more.

"_Heh… Why I do get the feeling behind those words, with the current atmosphere are you sure you shouldn't be directing them to the person in front of you instead?"_

"_Shut Up!" _Ryou exploded in his mind, yet received only cackling in return.

"Fuee… Ryou are you alright?"

Rishia's voice brought him back into the realm, of reality as he took a few but very needed steps back, "Yeah I'm fine, they were just being annoying pricks…"

"You sure?" She narrowed her eyes squinting at him almost suspiciously, "You're a little flushed. I knew you should have worn a cloak, you're probably coming down with something!"

"_Ohh he is coming down with something alright!"_ Pride answered from within, before descending back into loud laughter.

Gritting his teeth, Ryou tried to mute the laughter, "I'm fine Rish, it's nothing. Besides…" He trailed off, as most of the embarrassment faded from his expression, "...there is still something I have to tell you..!"

"Ahhhhhh!" A scream of horror pierced the clearing startling them, as they both turned to look in the direction it had come.

"Was that Rifana-chan?!" Rishia questioned loudly, recognizing the voice.

"Come on let's go!" Ryou urged as they broke in a mad dash towards their carriage.

* * *

It took less than thirty seconds for the Bow Hero to reach the clearing where they had stop for the night. Surveying the area he quickly found Rifana pressed against one of the giant trees, completely paralyzed.

"Ryou, help…" She pleaded urgently, but in a very low tone of voice.

Blinking Ryou took in the scene in front of him and relaxed slightly, even finding some degree of amusement. The reason behind the small demi-human bout of terror, stood between him and the girl, slowly slithering towards her.

"Fuee! W-Whats wro…" Rishia panted coming to a stop next to him, yet paused when she realized what had happened, "...Ryou... I think they hatched."

"You don't say…" The Bow Hero quipped as he observed the small eldritch worm, thinner than his arm, continuing its path towards the girl.

"Ryou!" The small girl hissed, now with an undertone of panic.

"Geez calm down Rifana, it can't hurt you, poor thing is at level one." Ryou pointed out.

His words seemed to have no effect on the girl, who shook her head in denial, her eyes widening in fear as the worm came near her feet.

A shadow passed over her eyes, and something inside Rifana snapped. With a mixture of a yell and a shriek, she stood forward and pulled her leg back.

_Wham!_

The Bow Hero cursed, as he dashed forward and caught the small monster mid-air in his arms as it squirmed and hissed lightly. Accessing his Status Magic, he quickly moved to the Monster Trainer Menu.

**[Mithril-Plated Juvenile Worm]**

**[Level- 1]**

**[Exp - 0/100]**

**[Traits Points 0/6 - Defense Bonus(Small), Magic Defense Bonus(Small), Imbued Magic Core(Small), Underground Moving Speed Bonus(Small)]**

**[HP - 40/120]**

"What the hell Rifana! It's just a baby!" Ryou shouted, as the creature continued to squirm in his arms, before getting off, and slithering between his legs. Raising its head, it hissed towards the weasel-girl. It probably was supposed to sound threatening, but in Ryou's ears, it just resembled a deflating balloon.

"It is not! It's an ugly monster! One that almost seems like it came crawling out of the wave!" Rifana shouted back, her shoulders shaking.

The small creature lowered its head and begun releasing a sound that sounded like whimpering.

"Rifana! Don't say stuff like that! It can understand you, and you're hurting its feelings!" He admonished, a moment later he was crouching and rubbing the top of the worm's head with a single finger.

"Ryou they are worms! Ugly worms at that! They don't have feelings!"

"You don't have feelings, you insensitive barbarian!"

"Hehehe… You look like siblings arguing." Rishia announced with a giggle.

Ryou's eyes landed on his partner with a glare, "Who the hell would ever want to be related to a barbarian?!"

"That's what I should say, you… You worm-lover!"

"Okay now you're just being plain nasty!"

"Onii-shama, they're funny." Quartz voiced from the side.

Ryou turned his attention towards the dragon-girl currently crouching on the ground. In front of her stood the other six worms all in line with the upper part of their bodies in the air.

"Look! Look! Right!" Quartz chirped with far more emotion than he had ever heard in her voice, a small smile tugged at the corner of her lips, as she tilted her head to the right. Following the movement, the small creatures leaned towards the right.

"Left!" She ordered, moving her head in the opposite direction, and once more the small newborn creatures mimicked her.

"Now flip!" Quartz exclaimed as she jumped backwards, landing back in a crouch an instant later. The worms, however, had just been born, and lack the fitness and gracefulness to produce a back-flip, so they ended up sprawling on the ground.

_Slap!_

Everyone turned to look at the sound and found the Bow Hero's hand firmly glued to his face, as he released a very audible sigh.

"Quartz, why in the nine-circles of hell are you teaching my worms… My supposedly terrifying worms, tricks..?"

"Hmm…" The small girl placed a finger in her chin as she thought about it, "...It's fun, and it makes them look cuter. If they are cute Rifana-onee-shama will like them."

"That will never happen! Not in a million years!" Rifana snapped, crossing her arms.

"Haaaa…." Ryou released a breath, suddenly feeling far more tired, "Okay enough with the stand-up comedy show. I'm imposing some more ground rules in team Ryou as of now."

"One…" He declared raising his finger in the air, "...No one is allowed to hurt party members, no matter how they look!" He finished with a pointed look towards the demi-human of the party.

Rifana released a small huffing sound, "...and what's stopping them from hurting _me_?"

"Ohh I don't know…" Ryou stated sarcastically, "...perhaps the one thousand restrictions that I added to their seal, that are turned near maximum!"

That seemed to calm the girl down a notch, but she still released another small huff as she looked to the side.

_Is this what they call the rebellion phase? _Ryou wondered. He had never truly gone through a rebellion phase that he could remember.

"_What about all the P.E. classes you used to ditch back in your teen years just so that you could go partake in a very different kind of physical activity, one that is usually done in pairs…"_ Wrath added almost innocently.

_"Shut up! That class was crap to begin with! Who the hell would wait four hours after lunch in school on a Friday just to have P.E.?"_

_"Especially when there are much better things to do right?"_

_"You know__… You guys are awfully chatty nowadays…"_

_"Your near-miss, augmented the connection somewhat, and we are making the best of it while it lasts__…"_

_"Yeah well. then do it in silence!"_

_"Every party needs a popper and that's why__…"_

Ryou promptly tried to mute the internal conversation focusing his attention on the outside.

"Ryou… Were you talking to them again?" Rishia asked, after she had watched the Hero gain a far-off look for a few moments.

"They?" Rifana questioned in confusion, head moving from Rishia to Ryou.

"Yeah…" He released another sigh, "...better get this out of the way."

* * *

"So you are hearing voices in your head?" Rifana questioned with a small frown, "Father always said that was the first sign of the crazies…" She finished in a murmur.

While the tone had been low, Ryou still heard it, "I don't think that I'm going insane, at least not to the point that I'm incapable of functioning as a normal human being."

"That aside, about these cursed series or whatever. They sound like a demon is possessing you or something… Are you going to be alright?"

"They were unlocked a while ago, so nothing as changed besides the fact that I have to be careful with my temper, but I'll endure it, don't worry."

Rifana lowered her head but nodded nonetheless.

"Endure…" Rishia murmured slowly as if tasting the word, before her face scrunched up, "You don't have to endure everything by yourself you know."

Ryou's eyes softened slightly, and nodded, "I know."

"I'm your partner, and I have already s-sworn to follow you, that means s-sharing burdens, a-a-and walking by your side l-like you said..."She finished stuttering, as she looked to her side, her hair hiding her face.

Ryou's lips went upwards at her words, "I know, and thanks, Rish…"

Said girl only offered a small nod in response.

The small demi-human girl however narrowed her eyes, as they went from the green-haired girl to Ryou, and back to Rishia a couple of times before they lit up in understanding, and a small grin formed on her face.

"Ohh I see how it…"

"Huh?" Ryou's head snapped upwards, eyes filled with confusion, as he looked off into the distance, "Did you guys hear that?"

"Fuee… Hear what?" Rishia questioned her face now back to its normal complexion.

Ryou continued to eye the trees for a few more moments, before shrugging, "I could have sworn I heard a scream, and it sounded a lot like Motoyasu of all people…"

"You sure?" Rifana asked as her ears twitched slightly, "I have pretty good hearing, and I didn't hear anything."

"Meh, probably my imagination…" Ryou concluded with another shrug

"Probably, I mean what would this Motoyasu person be doing in a forest in the middle of the night?"

"Knowing him it would probably be what he does best…"

"That is?" The small girl inquired, curiously.

"...being an idiot." Ryou deadpanned.

* * *

The rain had stopped not even fifteen minutes ago and already she found herself missing the sound, soft as it had been it somewhat muted the idle if bland chatter from her 'companions'.

True to their persona, Malty and Lesty talked the Yari-no Yuusha ears off with the most boring of topics, and while normally Elena would join in, if nothing else to keep up her image, she found she couldn't focus on it at all.

Once more her eyes went to the smallest member of their party for a moment before she averted her gaze towards the darkness outside the window of their carriage as her teeth clench.

_Never in my life have I felt sorry for someone, yet now, I can__'t even look at her without feeling like a horrible human being..._ The young woman complained inside her head.

Ever since Melromark's Princess had revealed her cruel plan to deal with Rino, Elena found herself thinking about the petite mage seated beside her far more than she cared to admit, and even knowing there was nothing to be done, her conscious decided it would be a good moment to show that it existed.

She took another peek at the petite mage, who normally tried to join in on their conversation, something that usually resulted in failure, thanks to the combined efforts of the Princess and her main sycophant who never failed to subtly push the girl out of the circle. However, instead of trying to participate, Rino appeared to be in her own world, her eyes locked on the opposite window with a frown gracing her face.

_Wonder what she__'s thinking about…_

No sooner had the thought crossed her mind the carriage came to an abrupt stop, and she had to grab on to prevent her from crashing face-first into Lesty, Rino had no such luck and landed on the opposite bench, were once Malty had been seated. The Princess, not one to miss an opportunity, had jumped an instant earlier, capitalizing on the situation to land on the Hero's lap.

A pair of hands steadied the princess, "Are you alright Myne?" Motoyasu asked concern apparent on his face.

Elena resisted the urge to roll her eyes as the Princess blinked a couple of times trying to look as demure as possible.

"Yes, thanks to you Motoyasu-sama…" She trailed off with a small smile, one that the Spear hero mimic as one hand went to scratch his head.

"Hehe, no problem Myne." He assured with a small laugh, before tilting his head slightly upwards, "Though I wonder what that was about."

Sounds of footsteps echoed, and a moment later the door to their carriage opened, revealing one of the soldiers that were escorting them.

"Excuse me, but is everyone alright?!" The man asked eyeing the occupants.

"Yeah we're fine, but what happened?" Motoyasu questioned with a frown.

The man shifted in place for a moment, "It's the filorials! Something scared the hell out of them."

"They are birds, and stupid ones at that… A mouse could have spooked them for all we know." Lesty interjected.

"Hey captain, you better come and take a look at this!" A voice echoed from outside.

The man quickly excused himself and disappeared from view, as silence fell for a few moments inside.

"Better go see what this is about." The hero decided, as he maneuvered himself out into the open, a moment later Malty and Lesty quickly scurried after the Spear Hero.

Elena took another glance at the mage of the party, who had returned to her seat and was rubbing her forehead that had made contact with the bench on the other side.

"You okay?" For the life of her, Elena couldn't explain what prompt her to speak and immediately regretted it, as the small girl send her a smile that tugged hard at something inside.

"Y-Yes it's just a scratch Elena!" Rino reassured.

The smile almost physically hurt her, and without another word, Elena turned around and walked out. The moment she stepped outside she felt a shiver as a cold breeze passed over her naked shoulders.

A quick look around showed the rest of their party looking at something on the ground a few meters in front of the wooden vehicle, one of the soldiers holding a small lantern, and pointing towards the ground at their feet. The light illuminating a few meters around them but hardly reaching the underbrush next to the main road.

"It's like Lesty said, Motoyasu-sama! Those birds are stupid!" Elena heard Malty snide.

The Princess words seemed to have been understood if the way the two filorials pulling her carriage squealed as if affronted was of any indication.

"I mean, this is pretty normal isn't it?" Motoyasu asked, also looking towards the ground.

Finally making her way next to them, Elena saw what they were looking at, and there engraved in the ground stood what appeared to be a five-clawed footprint.

"Not so Yuusha-sama, these tracks were not made by a ground dragon, I can almost swear these belong to a four-legged dragon, a juvenile one by the looks of it." The soldier that had come to check on them explained.

An audible huff filled the air, as Malty haughtily swung her hair, "You must be joking, what business would a dragon have on the main road? And why would it be walking instead of flying?"

"Perhaps it was hunting, there are tracks of another carriage here, though…" One of the other soldiers trailed off, his finger tracing the trail as his face morphed in confusion, "...It almost seems like the carriage was being pulled by the dragon?"

Elena blinked in incredulity, feeling the same doubt the soldier was currently feeling.

_Using a four-legged dragon to pull a carriage?_ She wondered in disbelief. From what she knew, any four-legged dragons were both rare, and very hard to tame, so she very much doubted that existed someone who would use such a rare beast to do something as mundane as pulling a carriage.

"Enough with the jokes already, who in their right mind would use a full-blown dragon to pull a wooden wagon?!" Malty said with clear irritation as she stomped her foot.

"But you know…" The hero's voice at everyone looking at him, as he scratched his chin with a small almost whimsical smile, "...having a dragon pulling a carriage would be much cooler than these stupid birds."

Faster then her eyes could track, one of the hero's arms was encircled, as Melromarc's Princess all but melted against the young man.

"If that is your wish, I can speak with father. I'm sure he can arrange one for you." The Princess's tone was both soft and enticing, a mixture that sounded so forced in Elena's ears she did rolled her eyes.

_You really don__'t miss a single opportunity do you Malty?_ Elena thought annoyed.

"That would be cool, but there is no need to trouble your father with such a request, already he is helping us more than enough." Motoyasu reasoned.

"Huh?"

Elena turned to look at the soft sound and found that Rino had turned to look at something in the direction behind their carriage, her face contorting in confusion.

"What's that sound?" The petite mage asked out loud.

_Sound?_ Elena wondered as she tried to mute everything else but found she couldn't hear anything.

"I don't hear anything…"

"Great… First, she is off in la-la land, and now she is hearing things…" Lesty muttered in a low sarcastic tone.

"No, wait…" Motoyasu interjected, as he untangled himself from Malty's embrace much to her annoyance, and came to a stop near Rino, "I can hear it too!"

"It sounds like fast and heavy thumping sounds." Rino continued looking off in the distance.

Finally, the sound reached Elena, who also came to a stop near the two, and just like Rino had mentioned, it sounded both very heavy, and fast, not only that, but whatever it was it was fast approaching them.

"That sound…" Motoyasu whispered as his lips took a turn down, and he gave a few steps forward to stand in front of them, "...It sounds awfully familiar, like the drumbeat from hell... I have a bad feeling about this..."

No sooner had the Spear Hero spoken, lightning came crashing down from the skies, illuminating both the dirt road and clearly showing what was coming towards them. Big if somewhat round, light reflected on white feathers. a monstrosity that could only be described as something straight out of Motoyasu's worse nightmare.

Elena's eyes widen as a familiar if unique filorial came racing down the road, and she could almost swear that its visage was full of childlike giddiness.

"Spear Guy!" The creature yelled full of maniacal glee, just like the lightning that had come a moment before.

"No! Not that thing again!" A scream full of terror that had no place coming out from an adult male, escaped the Spear Hero, as is face went pale as a sheet.

Knowing what was about to happen, Elena quickly ran to the side, her hand grasping Rino's as the girl gave a small gasp, holding onto her hat with her other hand, a moment later she was safely pressed against their carriage and away from the carnage that was about to descend on them.

"Spear Guy? Huh? Motoyasu?" Another familiar voice rang out filled with confusion.

"Naofumi! I have had it with you and your stupid, fat bird!" The blond young man exploded as he took out his spear already covered in a red gleam. Rearing it back for an instant the Spear Hero threw his weapon forward, "Air Strike Javelin!"

A red missile blurred forward aimed at the fast-approaching target. Just as it was about to hit the strangely shaped Filorial, the creature side-stepped it in a manner far too gracious than what one would expect from it.

A reasoning shriek of something grinding against metal reverberated all around as the red magical spear met a dark green shield, showering the road in sparks, and streaks of red and green light beams.

Gritting his teeth, the Shieldbearer put all his strength into his arm, and with a heavy grunt, he diverted the attack into the forest as it went through a tree before vanishing from sight.

"What the hell is wrong with you you _Lunatic!_!" Naofumi's yell turned a pitch higher, as he clutched the reins, the world around him blurring, announcing his filorial queen preferred move. An instant later the Shield Hero saw a giant mass of pink flying towards him and closed his eyes in anticipation.

Something soft and light crashed against his chest, and he once more opened his eyes, to see Sakura, who had been sent flying backwards due to the drastic increase in speed but had the presence of mind to change back into human form at the last instant.

The girl's eyes swirled out of focus, as she drawled his name in a mumble, "Naofumi…"

What came next could only be described as a sound boom like explosion, followed by a high pitch girlish scream that hurt the Naofumi's ears, and yet at the same time filled him with a strange sense of fulfillment.

Eyes moving upwards, he saw it almost in slow motion. Motoyasu, illuminated by a few rays of moonlight that peered through the clouds, flipped in the air, his face etched in agony, both hands grabbing his crotch as he disappeared over the tree line.

"Motoyasu-sama!" Malty screamed as she took off into the forest.

"Hehehe…" Something bubbled within the Shield Hero's throat, softly at first before gaining in strength with each passing second, "Hahahahahahaha!"

"What's going on…" Raphtalia moaned as she peered from inside the carriage one hand in front of her mouth, her face a little green from the rocky trip.

The young woman, took a look around, first towards her master who was laughing an uncharacteristically belly laugh full of mirth with Sakura on his lap seemingly passed out.

Her eyes moved then towards Filo, who was raising both wings in the air, in what seemed like a victory pose.

"Filo isn't fat nor stupid! Spear guy is the stupid one, and Filo hates Spear guy!" The filorial declared.

Finally, her eyes fell on the rest of the audience, and she quickly identified the the Yari-no Yuusha's party, and with that everything clicked in place, as she released another moan her hand flying to her forehead.

Unseen by anyone, Elena's face turned to the side,

_Say what you want about him, but the Tate-no Yuusha sure knows how to make things interesting... _

"N-N-Naofumi! Stop laughing! This crap isn't funny!" Came the heated reply from the Spear Hero as he appeared out of a bush being supported by Melromarc's princess.

"Hahahaha! W-What are you talking about, this is great!" Naofumi chortled, wiping away an imaginary tear, "Instead of being a Hero you should try your hand in gymnastics Motoyasu, you could easily become a star, and I wouldn't mind letting Filo help you practice!"

"Y-You bastard!" Motoyasu growled out.

"Naofumi-sama…" Raphtalia moaned once more in exasperation.

"You worthless Shield! How dare you assault Motoyasu-sama?!"

At the voice of his nemesis, most of his good mood soured, and the grin in his face vanished his expression turning into one of irritation, "Tsk… What are you talking about? Exactly who was it that struck first?"

Melromarc's Princess visibly hissed, resembling a snake, as her face turn red with anger, "Guards! That criminal just assaulted our honorable Yuusha! Arrest him!"

"Ohh crap…" Naofumi cursed, as he saw the guards drawing their swords,"... Filo get us out of here!"

Without a second to waste the white-feathered Filorial took off, the carriage passing at high speed through the guards, yet just as she was about to pass through the Spear Hero and the Princess, the Filorial Queen stomped on a particularly large puddle, sending a wave of mud flying just at the right angle.

Malty shrieked but the sound became muffled, as the wave crashed into her filling her mouth, and drenching her from top to bottom in mud.

"Heh!" The Filorial send them a side grin, before continuing on her way.

Naofumi, blink once then twice, and lost it again, his resounding laughter echoing down the road even as they disappeared in the distance.

"Y-Y-You…"Spluttering, Malty quickly wiped her face, her eyes bloodshot, as she trembled with anger. "You worthless bastard! I'll have your head for this you hear me!"

Since everyone's attention was down the road were the Shield Hero had disappeared, no-one saw Elena tremble in place.

_That__… was pure, quality entertainment!_ She chortled silently, as her eyes took in the once pristine princess, now resembling a mud cake.

* * *

"I know how they are, but do you really have to rile them up every time you see them?" Raphtalia demanded, disapproval clear in her voice, as she watched her master that was still fighting to reign in his laugh.

"Hahaha…D-Don't be such a spoilsport Raphtalia, or are you telling me you didn't get some satisfaction out of it," Naofumi asked, his face still somewhat flushed from laughing.

"I-I won't deny it, but still…" Raphtalia trailed off, trying to look stern, although if one were to look closely they would see her lips trembling almost imperceptibly.

"Besides this much is nothing considering everything those guys put me through."

"Still I think that both you and Filo should have some moderation!" Raphtalia rebuked, however it became clear she no longer had the Shield Hero's attention.

"...and make sure that you give that thing a good kick every time you see it!" Naofumi finished.

"Okay!" Filo chirped.

_Thing? It?_ "Did you just dehumanize him?" Raphtalia asked blinking, as she took a seat next to the Shield Hero.

Turning his face towards the demi-human, Naofumi scoffed, "No, you have to broaden your way of thinking Raphtalia, that was obviously a compliment."

"Clearly I must, because I just can't see how calling someone a thing can be interpreted as a compliment."

"That's because that guy is an existence lower than dirt, one that doesn't deserve to be called by name, same with that bitch, so as far as I'm concerned calling him a thing is a clear improvement," Naofumi explained with a small smirk blooming in his face.

_So you did dehumanize him__… Sometimes Naofumi-sama…_ The Demi-human girl let out a soft sigh. It wasn't that she couldn't see where her master was coming from, but sometimes she wished he would at least try to live up to his title even if only a little.

"Be that as it may Naofumi-sama if you don't reprimand her from time to time, she will just continue acting like a brute, and what if she kicks some noble next time? We might get in a lot of trouble!

Naofumi just snorted as he waved his hand in the air in a dismissing manner, "You know as well as I do they already hate me out of principle alone, so if that's the case, we might as well give them a good reason for them to hate me for real."

"That line of thinking is just bad, instead of trying to be hated why don't you try to make people see the real you?" Raphtalia countered softly.

Some light faded from the young man's eyes, "This is the real me Raphtalia."

"We both know that's not true at all…" She responded, her voice soft as her eyes met his. For what seemed like an eternity their eyes remained locked, until something gave away, and the Shield Hero returned his attention to the map without another word.

Raphtalia released an inaudible huff, yet she couldn't stop the small trace of sadness that filled her. She knew the story behind what had happened to her master, but she also saw daily as he tried his very best for their sake. She knew that deep down, he was a kind person, and not the scoundrel that people made him out to be.

Looking upwards, she saw that the clouds were slowly clearing, giving way to the soft moonlight, as her tail waved lightly behind her.

_I wonder what it will take, for everyone to see you in the same light as we do..._

* * *

The wait was beginning to seriously annoy him, and after the fortune he had spent on renting a flying wyrm to fly all the way to the border, under the rain, and in a timely fashion, least other adventurers or god forbid his fellow heroes coming across this particular quest, he had been asked to wait until the person in charge finished whatever business the were conducting.

_At least this beats flying on that thing's back__… _Ren acknowledged with a wince, as he adjusted himself on the chair. If there was one negative point between his current existence and Brave Star Online, was the fact that traveling by a mount for extended times, could be a painful experience.

With no more than a side glance, an action he had mastered over thousands of hours, his weapons were laid bare for him to see, though he focused on a particular one.

**[Stormfury Sword - Status Sealed - Equipment Bonus - +4 attack, + 2 Defense, Damage to Flying Monsters(Small)]**

_This is going to be a pain__…_ He thought as he closed his eyes, already dreading the hours of grinding he would have to do to completely master the weapon displayed in front of him.

_Though it will be more efficient to get it out of the way now, then having to grind it later and this quest is perfect to do it_… He reasoned as he nodded to himself. The sword's current form was rather lackluster, and even when mastered, and awakened its stats would still pale in comparison to other swords, his Siderite Sword being one of them, but that wasn't the point.

_The bonuses that I__'ll gain from it, against both flying monsters, and bird type monsters are what's important…_ Those bonus would make up for his lack of ranged attacks, and would make those particular encounters go a lot more smoothly, though there existed one other monster were those bonus would shine the most.

_They will be crucial when the Phoenix rears its ugly head or heads, actually__…_ While it would be a very long time before he could even entertain the idea of challenging such a foe, there was nothing wrong with slowly preparing for the eventual confrontation.

_Not counting these bonuses I will need to farm equipment from the Spirit Turtle, and that will also be a pain__…_ He released another annoyed sigh. He could actually defeat the Spirit Turtle as he was now if he had the help of a semi-competent guild.

_The problem is those guys levels are way too low to be of any help__… _The realization had been vexing but there was nothing to be done. He had figured it would be better to raise his own level into the eighties range before attempting it. At that level, it would be a walk in the park, and he would finally be able to start grinding his way up the mid-game raid bosses.

_The Four Heavenly Beasts__…_ He remembered, as his lips turned into a smirk, already anticipating the epic battles, and the almost overpowered gear he would be able to collect from them. The waves were nothing but a prelude to the real deal after all.

"Yuusha-sama, Lady Adamalys will see you now…" A voice came from the corner of the room.

Opening his eyes, and uncrossing his arms, Ren raised from his seat while sending a cold glance towards the servant, "About time, I expected a little more efficiency out of this lor…"

_Wait__… Lady? _

"Wasn't this village ruled by a Lord?" He asked.

The man squirmed slightly under the suspicious look from the shorter young man, before explaining, "Well is correct, but due to being unable to safeguard the safety of his subjects, the previous Lord was deemed unworthy of ruling this territory and was relieved of such responsibilities. Lady Adamalys arrived just a few hours ago in a rush, and was settling in."

"I suppose that's understandable." Ren allowed without a hint of emotion, far too tired from both the trip and the wait.

"I thank you for your understanding. Now without further ado, please follow me." The servant motioned then with his hand, towards the end of the hallway.

Ren's eyes, however, went to the silver rosary that dangled from the servant's neck, and he raised an eyebrow, before passing the man.

_There are followers everywhere, even here it seems._ It wasn't that the information particularly surprised him, the religion did worship the saviors of the world, so it would only be normal for it to have a great number of followers, especially with the threat of the waves hovering above their heads.

Reaching the red wooden door, the servant knocked twice lightly. A moment passed before a soft voice echoed from behind the door.

"Please enter."

The man opened the door and motioned for the Hero to enter. Making his way into the office, Ren's gaze immediately fell on the one person inside, and his eyes widen as he felt his face flushing slightly.

The figure, smiled softly, opening a pale-white fan to hide it. Sharp almond eyes danced with amusement above it, "Amaki Ren-sama I take it?"

It took a moment for the Sword Hero's brain to reboot itself, from the sight of what could only be one of the most, if not the most beautiful woman he had ever seen in his life.

"Y-Yes…" He responded, coughing in his fist, and trying to regain his aloof stance once more, yet the following giggle made it a far harder task than he thought possible.

"It is an honor to finally lay eyes on one of the Yuusha's, and the Sword one no less." She replied gently, as she stood from her seat behind the desk.

Being the teenager he was, Ren's eyes moved just slightly to a very voluminous part of the woman's anatomy, as dark blond, almost brown hair cascaded over her shoulders, and down her light-pink dress until it reached her waist.

Making her way towards him, Ren had to stop himself from gulping, as the light smell of strawberries reached his nostrils as his eyes moved to the hand that had been extended towards him.

"My name is Adamalys, and although I too was caught by surprise by my sudden nomination, I am now in charge of this region." She introduced herself, eyes expectant yet gentle.

"I-Its a pleasure." He stammered slightly, as he took her hand in his, and even over the glove he could feel how soft her skin was.

"No Ren-sama…" Her tone change from gentle to borderline whimsical, as her eyes crinkled, her smile widening just a fraction. "...I guarantee you,_ the pleasure_ is all mine."

At the tone Ren swallowed in dry because there was something in that tone that he didn't quite understand, it left him uncomfortable, but not for a bad reason

"Please take a seat. I wish to get to know you a little better, the honorable Yuusha that my elder brother can't seem to stop praising, before we address this gryphon situation that is." She explained, extending one hand, not towards the chair in front of the desk, but towards a creamed colored coach.

A rather small one, he noted.

"I…" He hesitated for a moment, "I suppose it won't do any harm…" He responded, as he approached the couch, and took a seat at the border.

His blue eyes watch as the woman, hardly any older than Motoyasu, gracefully took a seat next to him, laying her fan on the table, and offered him a small smile, but showed no intention of starting a conversation, content to just watch him.

Averting his gaze, he tried to break the silence and latched on the first thing he could think of, "You mentioned an Elder brother?"

"Ahh, yes!" She exclaimed almost excitedly as she claimed one of his hands between both of hers, "Last time we talked, Elder Brother had nothing but praise to offer when talking about you Ren-sama. How valiant and fearless you were. How you single-handedly slew countless terrifying beast in our country since you were summoned. One of them being a dragon if I'm not mistaken?"

"Y-Y-Yes it was!" He almost found himself mortified when his voice cracked middle way, "B-But I'm sorry, I don't think I had the honor of meeting your brother."

"Ahh Elder Brother is one of the right hands of his Majesty, King Aultcray and as such is very busy managing his vast territory, and protecting it from all kinds of threats." She explained, still unwilling to let go of her new prized possession, namely the Sword Hero's hand.

From his hand firmly locked away between both of hers, to those expressive eyes, and other more alluring parts Ren was unable to figure out where exactly he should look, so he settled for a giant familiar rosary on a far wall behind her desk, and between two large windows that seemed to lead to a balcony of sorts, "I-I'm sorry! He is such an important person, and has been offering me such praise, and yet I don't know his name!"

She offered another soft laugh, and waved one of her hands in a dismissing faction, but still kept the Sword Hero's one in her other hand, "There is no need to fret so much about such a minor detail, it's understandable with how busy you have been. But if it lays your mind to rest, his name is Rabier…"

"...Idol Rabier."

* * *

_Next Chapter - Reunion_

* * *

Following is the list with all the Bows since the last one, in chapter 25.

**[Marble Horror Mimick Bow - Awaken - Uncommon - Equipment Bonus - 6 + Attack, Hiding Bonus(Small) Detection Bonus(Small) - Special Effect - Monster Lure(Medium), Monster Attraction Range Bonus(Medium)]**

-The Awakened, and uncommon version of the Marble Mimick Bow. Ryou only powered it up lightly to get access to a better bonus, that would allow him to aggro more enemies, over a larger range.

**[Spider Horror Bow - Sealed - Common - Equipment Bonus - 4 + Attack, Poison Attack Bonus(Small), Poison Modification Skill]**

-The Bow from the Spider in the Mithril Mine that freaks him out, it gives a bonus to Poison attacks, and the ability to modify poisons, similar to the monster modification Skill. It will be touched upon further down the line.

**[Cave Crawler Bow - Sealed . Common - Equipment Bonus - + 4 Attack, + 4 Defense, Status Effects Bonus(Small)]**

The Bow From the 'Eldrich Pigs that Quartz loves/hates, It augments the efficiency of Status Effects.

**[Ballista + 7 - Awakened - Rare - Equipment bonus - + 5 Attack - Special effect - Attack Bonus (Great), Skill Effectiveness Bonus( Medium), Penetration Bonus (Medium), Movement Speed Penalty (Great), Attack Speed Penalty(Medium)]**

-The uber powered-up version of the Balista, and Ryou's strongest bow at that point, since besides having a great base attack compared to others, it as a huge bonus that increase that attack, and then it double-dips by increasing Skill effectiveness, the downside being, it as a much slower firing speed, and it slows Ryou to a crawl while he has it equipped.

**[Bio-Engineered Mithril-Plated Worm Armored Bow - Common - Equipment bonus - + 8 to Defense, Magic Resistance bonus (Small)]**

-The Bow gained from absorbing some of the worm platings, and it gives a good straight bonus to defense, along with a small bonus against magical attacks.

**[Bio-Engineered Mithril-Plated Worm Meat Bow - Common- Equipment bonus - Exotic Delicacies Preparation Bonus (Small)]**

-The Bow gained from absorbing some of the worm's meat. It was mostly for humor reason, though I intend to have it play a role later down the line, probably among the lines of humor too.

[**Bio-Engineered Worm Core Bow - Common- Equipment bonus - + 12 Magic, MP Bonus (Small), Magic Bonus (Small), Charged Shot Skill, Monster Modification Skill Unlocked - Special Effect - Charging Speed Bonus (Medium)]**

-The Bow unlocked by absorbing the worm's core, while it as great stats all around, it's focus is mainly magic and Mp. It offers Ryou the Charged Shot Skill, and that is currently Ryou's most powerful attack. The Charged Shot takes a small amount of SP to activate, but the charging process comes from his MP, something that even Ryou notices as strange.

Even with the Bow Equipped, it still takes a considerable amount of time to charge, but even with Ryou's current MP pool, it's significantly more powerful than even his combination Skills, offering far more condensed power, and having an ability to melt through meters of solid rock

The last skill is the Monster Modification ability, and what partially led Ryou to go after the Mithril-Plated worm's eggs. Like it was explained it's an ability that allows him to remove or add traits to his monsters. Each monster as a maximum number of trait points that can be increased by leveling. More traits become available as Ryou absorbs more materials, and as his monster levels up. Unfortunately, the Skill is not all-powerful, since changing traits is not an immediate process, and leaves the monster unable to battle for the remainder of the process. One other weakness would be that there are a lot more traits when modifying simpler Lifeforms, while they're far more restrictive on more complex creatures.

An Example for explanation sake's would be that Ryou could alter the composition of a balloon to give him explosive properties, the problem would be that the explosion would still be dependent on the Balloons attack value. However even if he were to brand Quartz with a seal, to enable her for modification, he wouldn't be able to turn her in a flying bomb [Poor Quartz :( ], for those reasons, since she is a far more complex life form.

The worms are somewhere in between, and while it hasn't been showcased, you can expect the skill to be one that Ryou will play extensively with down the line, with lots of shenanigans bordering on almost broken.

**[Copper Ore Bow - Sealed - Common - Equipment Bonus - + 1 to Mining Ability, Cooper Detection Ability, Beginner Copper Based Blacksmithing Recipes Unlocked]**

-A Bow unlocked during Ryou's apprenticeship in the art of Blacksmithing. It offers a small bonus to his mining ability, along with the ability to detect copper up until one hundred meters from his status window, and it also unlocks the recipes to make basic copper armor and weaponry.

**[Iron Ore Bow - Sealed - Common - Equipment Bonus - + 1 to Attack, Iron Detection Ability, Beginner Iron-Based Blacksmithing Recipes Unlocked]**

-Pretty much the same as with the last Bow, only for Iron instead.

**[Silver Ore Bow - Sealed - Common - Equipment Bonus - Damage against Wolves Bonus(Small), Silver Detection Ability, Beginner Silver Based Blacksmithing Recipes Unlocked, Beginner Silver Based Accessory Crafting Recipes Unlocked]**

-It follows the same theme, as the previous ones, with the difference of also unlocking accessory recipes and a small bonus to wolves.

**[Gold Ore Bow Sealed - Common - Equipment Bonus - + 1 to Accessory Appraisal Skill, Gold Ore Detection Ability, Beginner Gold Based Blacksmithing Recipes Unlocked, Beginner Gold Based Accessory Crafting Recipes Unlocked]**

-Same as the last one, with the difference being that it gives Ryou a small boost to his ability in appraising some accessories.

**[Magicsteel Ore Bow Sealed - Common - Equipment Bonus - + 2 to Magic, Magic Steel Detection Ability, Beginner Magic Steel Based Blacksmithing Recipes Unlocked]**

-Same Bow for Magic Steel.

**[Mithril Ore Bow - Sealed - Common - Equipment Bonus - + 4 to Magic, +2 to Mining Ability, Mithril Detection Ability, Beginner Mithril Based Blacksmithing Recipes Unlocked]**

-Now this one was gained with Ryou absorbing some of his Mithril Ore, it offers a better boost to his mining ability, along with some magic.

**[Anvil Bow Sealed - Common - Equipment Bonus - +21 to Defence, +1 to Blacksmithing Ability]**

-Before anyone asks, while it can be used as a melee weapon, the damage would be nowhere close to a proper offensive bow. That being said, this is one of the Bows that allows Ryou to grasp blacksmithing far more easily than the normal person, thanks to the boost.

**[Hammer Bow - Sealed - Common - Equipment Bonus - + 1 to Attack, +1 to Blacksmithing Ability]**

-Pretty much the same as the previous one.

**[Small Forge Bow - Sealed - Common - Equipment Bonus - +1 to attack, +2 to Blacksmithing Ability, Remote Forging Skill]**

-Yes, Ryou absorbed a small used forge to unlocked this bow. It offers an even bigger boost to his blacksmithing ability, and it allows him to forge items on the go, with a timer attached to them, the time depending on the item he wants to craft.

**[Gryphon's Feathered Bow + 6 - Rare - Awakened - Equipment Bonus - + 5 Attack, + 5 Agility, Air Strike Arrow Skill, Air Skills Damage Bonus(Small) - Special Effect - Air Strike Arrow Piercing Bonus(Medium), Air Strike Attack Speed Bonus(Medium), Air Strike Arrow Projectile Speed Bonus(Medium), Air Strike Arrow Barrage]**

-The upgraded version of his Gryphon's Feathered Bow. Besides what it offered previously, it now also boosts his Air Strike Skill in a lot of parameters. The barrage part is what might include some confusion, but to keep it simple it allows Ryou to fire three shots instead of just one, with a small penalty to attack, this can be used in conjunction with his rapid Shot Skill, to unleash a barrage of nine Air Strike Arrows if he wishes.

**[Mithril Elemental Bow - Equipment Bonus - +3 Attack, +3 Magic, Bonus to Elemental Attacks(Small)]**

The Bow unlocked by absorbing some of the remnants of a Mithril Elemental. It basically gives a small boost to all types of elemental skills.

**[Monster Trainer Bow I - Rarity - Common - Awakened - Equipment Bonus - Monster Grow Correction(Small), Monster Grow Adjustment (Small)]**

Unlocked when Ryou absorbs some of the ink used to brand the Monster Trainer Seal on his worms, Like the previous ones these boosts both the grow and stats of his monsters, unfortunately, it doesn't double down on Quartz since she no longer as the seal. However she does receive the bonus from both the Dragon Tamer Series and the Comrade Series, so she is slowly becoming the powerhouse of the team.

**[Monster Trainer Bow II - Rarity - Common - Awakened - Equipment Bonus - Monster Grow Correction(Medium)]**

-Same as the previous one with a bigger bonus, however, the requirements were both the Ink and the shards from Quartz Egg.

**[Monster Trainer Bow III - Rarity - Common - Awakened - Equipment Bonus - Monster Grow Correction(High), Monster Grow Adjustment (Medium)]**

-Like before, the same series, a bigger bonus, unlocked both from absorbing the Ink, and from Quartz Blood.

Both the Curse Series Bows and the ones Ryou unlocked from Erhard are not present in this list since I want to keep the surprise, especially concerning some of the abilities from the Curse Series.


	34. Reunion

**A/N-** Back with another Chapter guys, and things will be heating up from now onward.

Some of you shared some worries about the newest addition to Ryou's party, so I wanted to make it clear that the Eldrich Worms role is mostly a support one, though expect a lot of shenanigans coming from them as they grow.

On another note I'm going with the Light Novel/Manga version for the favorite skill hat the heroes like to use, so to dispel any doubts, the Shooting Star Arrow is Itsuki's Meteor Arrow/Shot, and the Meteor Bow will be called by the Light Novel's original name.

Also this chapter introduces Malty's college friend, and I suppose that for those that have read the WN and LN, they will understand how relevant the fact that he was part of the 'Whip Hero's party' really is.

Now let's get on with it. Where Ryou reaches Ehrenhalf Village, Rino's fate draws closer as a darker plot thickens, and the Bow Hero as a reunion with someone he didn't expect.

* * *

**Chapter. 34 Braving Into a New World: Reunion**

The first rays of light pierced through the horizon, as the sun gradually made itself visible once more, and with it came a clear sight of what lay before him.

It had taken them two days to reach Ehrenhalf Village, a trip that would ordinarily take a week was cut in less than half thanks to Quartz, that besides being incredibly fast could also be viewed as an all-terrain transportation. Their carriage, however, had surely taken a beating at being put to the test.

"So that's Ehrenhalf Village huh?" A young man murmured with one hand over his squinted eyes.

With one last step and Ryou was at the edge of the ridge, and in front of the Bow Hero stood a very steep slope. Beyond it were large grassy fields, with the occasional tree here and there, but his attention was on what lay even beyond.

A great grey, almost brown stonewall cut through the fields, stretching far beyond what he could see in both directions, and right in front of him, almost resting against the wall was Ehrenhalf Village.

At first glance the village itself seemed about the size of Gentlewood, though the architecture was vastly different, almost having an Egyptian feeling to it, completely different from every other village he had seen in Melromarc. There were however a few buildings clearly out of place, possessing a more medieval look, akin to those in Castle Town.

"Ryou, we're ready."

Turning towards his partner he shot her a small smile, before nodding, "Alright, let's get this over with, but first…" Ryou stopped as he tapped the ground twice with his foot.

The earth shook lightly for a moment before something broke through the surface a few meters away. Raising from the ground seven creatures, now more than twice as long as he was tall raised their heads, releasing a soft hiss.

**[Mithril-Plated Juvenile Worm]**

**[Level- 9]**

**[Exp - 350/960]**

**[Traits Points 3/15 - Defense Bonus(Medium), Magic Defense Bonus(Medium), Imbued Magic Core(Small), Underground Moving Speed Bonus(Medium), Health Bonus(Medium)]**

**[HP - 754/754]**

_They've grown this much in just two days huh?_ Looking at his worms he couldn't help but to marvel at the effectiveness of the Grow Correction abilities. Not everything could be attributed to that particular ability however, since he had also tweak them a bit using his monster's modification ability.

The augments had been only defensive in nature since he wanted to make sure they survived until they reach a level where they could be used in battle.

While their stats were rising quite nicely in his opinion, especially since the only experience they received had been from whatever monster Quartz had trampled along the way, they were still too low to deploy.

"...Alright you guys, I want you to stay under the ground and follow us until I order you otherwise." Ryou ordered, and as a tight and obedient unit, the worms bowed their heads, and burrow once more in the ground, and out of view.

Satisfied he turned once more to his party, "There. Now we can go."

* * *

Walking through the gates of Ehrenhalf village it was hard for Ryou to think that the situation was as bad as the Shadow Maid had hinted too.

The streets were full of people doing all sorts of business either in stores, stalls, or just the average merchant having his wares presented on top of some old cloth, something that should be expected from a village on the border, and one of the stops between Melromarc and Zetouble. The only thing that indicated something being wrong, was the unusual number of guards both patrolling the streets and on the walls.

"Quartz, stay close to me or you might get lost." Ryou advised as he placed his hand on top of the girl's head, "That goes for you… two…" He trailed off as he realized that the rest of his party was gone.

"One minute... How the hell did they vanished in less than one minute?" Ryou commented out loud in disbelief. Wherever he looked there were people, but no sight of green anywhere.

A pull on his sleeve had him look down towards Quartz, who was pointing to something in the distance.

"Onii-shama they're over there."

Following the finger, he finally saw Rishia and Rifana, glued to some display window. As he passed through the crowd to reach them while trying to keep Quartz near him, he realized they were passionately debating something, and that something became apparent when he got within hearing distance.

"Fuee! They're beautiful!" Rishia gushed with her hands clapped in front of her, as her head swayed from side to side.

"Right?" Rifana asked with a touch of melancholy, her tail wagging lightly behind her.

Raising an eyebrow, Ryou came to a stop behind them to see just what the girls in his party were gushing over.

"Sea jewelry huh?" He noted as he observed the variety of accessories made from seashells, coral, and other sea-based materials. "So that's what got the both of you so excited."

Rifana nodded softly, "They sure bring back a lot of memories…"

Ryou's eyes fell on the not so small demi-human girl, that now reached all the way to his chin, and he saw her eyes gaining a far-away look.

"Good ones?" He asked.

She nodded again, a small smile blossoming in her face, "Yes… Raphtalia-chan and I used to go to the beach near our village and pick all kinds of seashells." She released a tiny laugh, "Not Keel-kun though, he was always saying it was too girly."

Ryou released a nonsensical sound of amusement at the image.

"But it was Sadeena-onee-sama that always gave us the largest and most beautiful ones…"

"Sadeena?" Rishia uttered tilting her head, "You mentioned her before... The fisher from your village right?"

"Yup!" Rifana confirmed, "She always went out to dive every morning, either to fish, or just to fool around, but she was the only one who could get seashells from the ocean's floor."

"Oceans floor?" Ryou whistled in admiration, "Sounds like she had one hell of a pair of lungs."

He also had good memories of fishing, and diving in general in his youth. His paternal grandfather had made his life as a fisher, and although Ryou hardly had any memories of the man, it had been something that he had passed on to his own son. Unlike his grandfather, his father had found his calling somewhere else but still took a few days a year to go out to fish.

Looking back Ryou remembered, back than he usually found the whole thing somewhat boring, preferring to spend his time playing video games, or just hanging out with his friends. Now years later he could only remember those memories fondly, memories of a time that would never again return.

_To think the day would come when I missed fishing or diving in general__…_ He thought with fondness.

"There were a lot of aquatic demi-humans in the village, but none could beat Sadeena-onee-sama at diving…" A small giggle erupted from her mouth, even when it quirked into a small grin, "...Neither at diving nor at drinking I should say! That woman was a bottomless pit."

Ryou chuckled at that, shaking his head lightly.

Sounds like she would have made a worthy opponent for you, right Naofumi? Though he was sure his fellow hero would have been far less thrilled at the idea given what had happened the last time alcohol and the female gender had mixed together in his presence.

"Sounds like she was an interes…" Whatever Ryou was going to say was caught in his throat, as something brushed against his shoulder.

A sensation seized his heart, and his body felt as if the sky had fallen on top of him. The color from the Bow Hero's face bled, as a loud thumping noise echoed inside, and it took Ryou a moment to understand it was his own heartbeat.

_What the hell?!_ Turning his head around, Ryou tried to catch sight of what had sent his instinct into overdrive, but could only see a multitude of people.

"R-Ryou what's wrong?" Rishia asked worriedly, as she saw the frantic look of their party leader's face.

Ryou, however, didn't even hear his partner, his eyes moving erratically over the crowd.

"Ryou?" The voice, and the hand on his arm, finally grabbed his attention and had him turn around to the worried gaze of Rishia and the rest of his party.

"Sorry…" He apologized as he took another deep breath, "I just thought I felt something."

Yet even with those words the feeling of trepidation and hopelessness still remained in his heart, and it still felt like he had just brushed shoulders with death itself.

* * *

A figure came to a stop amid the crowd. Turning its head slightly, blue slitted eyes narrowed as they surveyed it with suspicion.

"Fuse-dono is something wrong?" Another, cloaked character asked from his side.

There was a moment of quiet from the other young man, as he continued to watch the crowd, before releasing a soft grunt, "No. I just felt something mildly interesting."

"Interesting?" The cloaked figure probed.

Shaking his head, white hair that escaped from under his bandana danced with the motion, "Yes but nothing of consequence." The young man stated, before his lips turned into a frown, his eyes stopping on a nearby alley.

"Come, let us get out of this crowd." He directed lightly, already in motion towards a dark, and humid alley, between two buildings.

Reaching the alley, the cloaked figure lowered his hood revealing a male adult face, a few creases at the corner of his black eyes with a rosary swaying from his neck at the action.

"Fuse-dono when is the envoy from Faubley going to get here?" The man asked gazing at the clearly taller and younger man.

The figure named Fuse spared a look at the man before looking upwards at the sky, "It will get here when it gets here. That guy works at no other pace than his own, so he will send his minions to retrieve the merchandise when he feel like it. Though I wouldn't bet for it to be this week, nor the next one for that matter."

"You sound displeased." The man pointed out, noticing the frown on his companion's face.

The frown on Fuse's face intensified, "If it wasn't for the fact that he is willing to pay a fortune for it, I would have cut ties with him a long time ago."

The other man nodded, though confusion filled his expression, "Still what would someone as esteemed as one of the Seven Star Heroes, want with such a beast."

"Dear old Takt likes to obtain unique things, specifically unique female things, though being the Whip Hero he can't be bothered to collect them himself, so he normally either sends his minions to get it, or he buys them." Fuse revealed as he doubled the corner of the dark alley.

"I see…" The man mumbled, though his tone of voice made it abundantly clear he didn't.

"He as an ability thanks to his Vassal Weapon that allows for monsters raised by him to change into humans. In short, he's just creating a harem of female human-like monsters… Though he as a few demi-humans too."

_Demi-humans__…_ Loathing filled the man's mind and expression, as he thought about the barbaric creatures that continue to poison their world with their existence.

"I never quite understood his fixation with collecting rare monsters or breeds of demi-humans, but for some reason the rarer it was the more excited he got." Fuse pondered, as his thoughts went to the time he had been part of the Whip Hero's party, "What I can tell you is that it was pure torment the time I spent with them. Those harpies did nothing but squeal, and worship him at every corner. A minute didn't pass were I didn't felt like snapping their little necks…"

_It would have been a favor to this world__… _The other man admitted to himself with a small grin, as he pictured the man in front of him breaking the necks of those loathsome creatures.

"...Nonetheless, the time I spent with him was amazingly beneficial, even if I had to lick his boots everyday…" Fuse confessed, as his eyes went to his hand before clenching it in a fist, a fist covered with a leather glove, something he had picked up from the Whip Hero.

_A buffoon he might be, but even I can deny he had a pretty good fashion sense__… _That had been true even during their time in Faubley's college. The place where he had first met the Whip Hero, and even before being awarded the right to wield a Vassal Weapon, Fuse had seen the potential in the prodigious youth, and how advantageous building a friendship with him could be.

Shaking his head of memories he would rather forget, Fuse came to a stop. His eyes surveyed the back alley establishment door, before raising them to the sign above the weathered entrance.

**[Sinner****'s Paradise]**

_Sigh__…_" I really need to change the name of this place, even if it rings true in some ways…" Fuse stated almost exasperated.

"But Fuse-dono, I was the one who chose the name!" The man interjected.

Sending his companion a side glance, Fuse raised an eyebrow, "That's the only thing I find funny about it. How did someone so devoted to religion come up with such a name?"

"It's a misdirection! No one would ever connect such a name to our esteemed church." The man explained almost haughtily as he closed his eyes and nodded to himself.

Since his eyes were closed he never saw the expression that came over Fuse, as his eyebrow twitched.

_That as to be the stupidest thing I have ever heard in my life__… Anyone with half a brain that knows what their little cult is all about would easily figure it out..._

"Whatever, that's not relevant right now, " With that, Fuse pushed the door and walked in, the other man following a second later.

At first glance, the establishment couldn't be distinguished from any other brothel. With a few chairs and couches, a couple of customers were seated on them, faces that Fuse recognized as regulars, near them dancing were a couple of female demi-humans, clad in about as much cloth as he had in his gloves.

His blue slitted eyes moved to another less familiar face that was being led by the hand to the upper floor, courtesy of a blond human girl. His captivated expression told Fuse that the man would soon become a regular too.

Ignoring the surface activities of the establishment, he locked eyes with the man at the counter and motioned with his head towards the door behind him.

The man's small pleased smile broadened, as he quickly opened the door for Fuse, and his companion to walk in, before following them into a dusty small room.

Closing the door behind him the owner addressed the man with all the enthusiasm of a small child, " Fuse-dono what a surprise! I didn't expect to see you here so soon."

Crossing his arms over his broad chest Fuse scoffed at the man's enthusiasm, "Enough with the fake pleasantries Fusir, they don't suit you."

"I apologize, it's a habit, especially when dealing with sheep for so long." The man's smile dropped a fraction as his tone changed, "So what is it that brought you back here so soon? Have you come to seek your own brand of entertainment again?"

"Unfortunately no, not right now, I'm just dropping by to warn you that someone will soon be delivering some merchandise specifically for me and that she is not to be touched until I return." Fuse commanded sternly, with a pointed look towards Fusir.

"Ohhh! Something specifically for you Fuse-dono? I'm excited!" Fusir exclaimed, before reigning himself once more as a glare found his person, "I do have to ask though, who will be making this delivery?"

Fuse eyed the man for a few seconds before answering, "Malty Melromarc."

"The First Princess?! She's coming here?!" Fuse's companion cried out in shock.

"Yes. Apparently, she has some baggage she wants to get rid of, and from the letter she sent me, it sounds just like the type of toy I enjoy the most." Fuse finished with a smirk.

His companion shuddered at the admission. He knew what kind of toys Fuse enjoyed playing with, and it always left a bad taste in his mouth.

"So the innocent humankind I take it?" Fusir asked in a giddy fashion.

"You know me too well Fusir." Fuse smirked as he leaned against a wall, "They are the best kind. They are always the ones that give out the best screams before they break…"

Fusir placed his hands on his cheeks, as he chuckled to himself.

"I wonder what this person did to have evoked Malty-sama's wrath in such a way?" The other man questioned, mostly to himself.

Fuse, however, raised an eyebrow in his direction, "You haven't the smallest idea of what kind of person your princess is, do you? One would assume the previous Captain of Melromarc's knights would at least have an idea of the devil that exists in the royal family."

"D-Devil?" The ex-captain stuttered in shock at hearing such a description being made at their country's princess.

"Indeed…" Fuse remarked with amusement, "Let me give you a piece of advice. Malty in some ways is even more twisted than I am. Just some food for thought."

The Ex-captain eyes widened but he offered no response.

"Sounds like you and the princess have a lot in common, Fuse-dono." Fusir ventured in curiosity.

"We were associates in college nothing more." Fuse offered, before moving away from the wall, "That being said I still have a few transactions to make, so I trust that the present she is bringing will be in pristine condition when I return."

Fusir clapped his hands, and nodded, "Of course Fuse-dono! However, does that mean I shouldn't use the normal procedure?"

Fuse mulled over the question for a few moments before shaking his head, "No, you are allowed to brand her, I wouldn't want to return only to find she ran away."

"The same as always then?" Fusir asked with a knowing smile.

"Of course. You know how I hate to have my blood used in that ritual. Brand her to your name." Fuse ordered.

"It will be done!" Fusir agreed.

"Good." The blue slitted-eyed man nodded, as his eyes went to another door, "Now with that dealt with, go get me the merchandise. The sooner I'm done with these transactions the sooner I can return to enjoy my new toy."

"Indeed." Fusir quipped as he walked over to the door. Opening it revealed a dark staircase, and in moments the man was gone disappearing in the darkness.

"As for you…" Fuse stated as his eyes moved from the door to the Ex-captain, "...I want you to lay low until I return. According to her letter, Malty is now part of one of the Legendary Yuusha's party, so no doubt he will follow, and while she clearly stated he is an idiot, I don't want to risk him catching wind of our operation. Is that clear?"

The man's head shot up straight at being addressed, having been lost in thought over the information pertaining their princess, "Of course Fuse-dono, I will tell my man to do the same until you're return."

"See to it that you do." Fuse warned lightly, "Also, I heard this region got itself a new noble. The previous one was an idiot and that played in our favor, but I know nothing about this new one... Is he going to be a problem?"

The previous captain shook his head from side to side, "No. Lady Adamalys is Lord Rabier's younger sister and a fellow devout. She has also been briefed on what is happening, so I'm sure she won't be a problem at all."

"That piggy has a sister huh..." Fuse noted with mild interest, "I wonder if she also shares her brother's _hobbies_."

"I wouldn't know, she is a very discreet one, or maybe shrewd would be more accurate. The only thing I know is that Balmus-sama pulled a lot of strings and called in on a lot of favors to have her established as the ruler of this region."

"He did, did he?" Fuse mused out loud.

"I only received bits and pieces of information, but from what I know the arrangement was done in a very swift manner, and there are some rumors among my man that her appointment was just a cover-up, and that she was sent here to retrieve something for his excellency." The man explained in a hushed tone.

"Probably some old religious relic. You faith addicts love to go crazy about those kinds of things." Fuse dismissed almost indifferently.

The ex-captain, however, shuffled in place, before shaking his head once more, "I don't know Fuse-dono, but I know that with the way it was done, and in such a short time-frame that whatever she might have been sent to retrieve, as to be incredibly valuable and there is a lot of urgency in retrieving it."

Fuse hummed, "So maybe it isn't some relic, but it hardly matters anyway. As long as she isn't a problem and lets me do as I please we won't have a problem."

Whatever the other man was going to say was cut off as the sound of whistling along with that of rattling chains could be heard, and slowly Fusir emerged from the staircase with his lips pursed, as he gave another pull on two chains in his grip.

Slowly from the staircase two figures emerged. Unquestionably female, both girls walked slowly into the room, clad in nothing but rugs, their eyes dead as a rotting corpse, and as far as the Ex-Captain was concerned they might as well be considered as such.

He felt no pity for the smallest one since she belonged to the race of beings he despised the most, even if she no longer possessed the traits that marked her as a Demi-human. Long gone were the ears and tail that held similarity with that of a wolf, having been removed during one of the sessions that Fuse called playtime.

The oldest one did fill him with a small sense of revolt however. As one of the Captains of Melromarc Knights, he had fought for his country and their religion for countless years. A country that knew were true purity lied, humans. The one true pure race, and the only one worthy of the lord's blessing.

_Necessary Evil__… _Those had been his excellency, Balmus-sama words when he had first described the need for selling their citizens into slavery. While it could be deemed as an abominable sin, it was nothing when compared to the possibility of their church losing its place as the main religion in Melromarc do to the lack of resources.

Just the thought of it being replaced with something like the Church of the Four Heroes filled the Ex-Captain with a sense of righteous fury, and it had dispelled most of his reservations.

He would sooner die a thousand deaths before allowing a religion that worshiped the Shield Hero to gain root in his country.

_Especially when god__'s justice is in the process of being delivered…_ He reminded himself. Already the largest blight on his country's soil had been expunged by his, and his comrades hands when they had burned the unholy settlement that had been Lurolona to the ground and delivered God's sentence on those devils that inhabited it.

It had been clear even before that, that Lurolona's destruction had been the will of the lord, if not for what reason had the first wave of calamity struck there?

_And to protect God__'s will in this world, we all have to make sacrifices…_ He recognized as his eyes fell on the human female once more. It did hurt him that such sacrifices were needed, but human slavery in Melromarc was far more profitable than demi-human one since it was prohibited, so the very few that had the means to dip their hand in such a market, had the right to sell their merchandise at the price they wanted.

_Until God__'s will is done, we have no choice but to thread on forbidden grounds…_

_...After all, nothing was more important than God..._

* * *

With a motion of his hand, the dragon of his party came to a stop, near the edge of a green meadow, and in front of a heavily dense forest. The only place cleared of vegetation would be the one road that led deeper into a small bordering country and towards Zetouble.

A small jump later, Ryou landed on the ground in front of Quartz as he surveyed the area. Besides the forest in front of him, there was a ledge half a football field to his left, that from what he had been able to observe during the trip, led to a very big drop ending on a pristine lake at the bottom.

B_etter stay clear from that, I don__'t want to find out if my Hero abilities protect me from falling into a lake at near terminal velocity…_

"Alright girls, you know what to do, so let's get this show started!" He directed.

"Okay!" Quartz chimed in, before dashing into the forest with Rishia in tow.

After having visited the mansion where the noble in charge of the region lived, Ryou had been briefed on the circumstances at hand. Much to his surprise, the nobility had turned out to be a young, and charming woman that had been appointed almost at moment's notice, due to the ineptitude of the previous lord.

_Politics at its best__…_ Although with rather unfortunate timing, such a situation while uncommon even in his previous world, wasn't unheard of, where a leader got released from his position when he couldn't present a solution to a crisis.

Adamalys had however been able to gather a few bits of information about the general situation on short notice, and had explained that the first evidence of the attacks had been found almost a month prior. At the time no one had batted an eye at it since the roads were far from safe, and if a merchant or traveler wanted to spare some coin at the cost of protection, then whatever came to pass would be on them.

The problems started as the attacks begun to escalate both in severity and frequency, causing problems for the village, and to a lesser degree to the whole country of Melromarc. As caravans that brought very essential merchandise from Zetouble and other surrounding countries started to dwindle, over fear of the attacks, the former lord had issued patrols along the main road.

According to what Adamalys what been able to uncover from the guards at Ehrenhalf Village, those patrols seemed to work for a few days, but before long even those guards and knights started disappearing, and sometimes the following patrol would find them, or what was left of them.

After that, the Lord of Ehrenhalf had lost almost all credibility so the very few merchants who just couldn't stop their trade begun to hire adventurers from Zetouble, classed-up ones at that, and once more it seemed like Ehrenhalf had finally received a much-needed break, however it did not last, as a far more terrifying creature begun to be sighted, one that even classed-up adventurers were no match for.

_It almost seems like every time they come up with a solution the situation escalates further__…_Ryou had thought back then.

With his reputation and position on the brink, the Noble had issued an urgent quest around the entire country, nevertheless, the powers that be had decided that he should be replaced with someone more competent.

The young woman had acknowledged that there hadn't been much that her predecessor could have done in such a situation, but there was a need to have someone take accountability, so the man had lost both his position and his status as noble.

After explaining the situation Adamalys had promised to help Ryou in any way she could, and while it seemed like she earnestly wanted to solve the situation, the Bow Hero had wondered if she too was just afraid that the fate that befell on her predecessor would fall on her too.

"So your plan is for us to stand here, while you shoot at those gryphons?" Rifana questioned from his side, with a touch of annoyance.

Ryou nodded, "Yup… You heard Lady Adamalys, she said this forest is theming to the brink with gryphons, so it's the perfect place to start."

Rifana frowned as she looked into the forest where Quartz and Rishia had disappeared a moment prior, "I also wanted to help."

He sent her a side look, "I know, but I'm not sending you into the thick of things when we don't know exactly what we are dealing with here. Besides you were there when Lady Adamalys told us what happened to the knights and guards that were sent to patrol that road."

Rifana's frown deepened at being remembered of that particular detail, "You still sent Rishia, and Quartz in there knowing that."

"They can take care of themselves, also they have experience fighting monsters stronger then they are. I trust them to retreat if the situation calls for it." Ryou explained, before taking a small breath, " You, on the other hand, are still learning how to fight, and have hardly seen battle so I'm not risking it."

The demi-human girl huffed, her face going to the side.

Her action so teenager-like had Ryou release a small smile. He knew from experience how fast demi-humans could grow, but Rifana had Raphtalia beaten in that regard, no doubt because she had leveled much faster than her friend. Her body was still lagging behind somewhat, but that didn't surprise Ryou, after all, magical world or not, there had to be limits on how much one could grow in a single day.

"Why are you smiling, Ryou?" She almost demanded, irritation clear in her voice.

"Nothing… Nothing at all, I'm just happy."_ ...happy that you got a chance at getting angry at such simple things. That you actually have a chance to grow and experience life..._

"Happy?" She uttered confused, then her eyes narrowed at some memory, "This wouldn't have anything to do with that woman would it?"

The Bow Hero blinked, unable to understand what his newest companion was getting at.

"Ohh don't make that face! I saw those looks she kept sending you! She wasn't even subtle about the fact that she wanted to take a bite at you!" Rifana exclaimed heatedly.

"W-What are you talking about?" Ryou stuttered in shock.

"Ohh come on…" She huffed once more throwing her arms in the air, "It was so obvious! The moment you announced yourself as the Yumi-no Yuusha I could almost swear her eyes began to shine!"

"I-I… Okay so maybe she was a little too friendly, but that's to be expected from nobles as far as us heroes are involved you know." Ryou tried to explain.

Sure he had noticed the woman had been a little bit of a flirt, throwing the off-handed compliment here and there but she had remained professional for the most part.

"Little friendly my tail…" She muttered, before looking at him straight in the eye, "You should learn where to draw a line, or else Rishia is going to get sad you know!"

Ryou felt his face heat up slightly at the accusation, "W-What exactly are you implying?!"

Her lip's broke into a grin, one that left Ryou feeling like a small child all over again, "Ohh I think you know exactly what I'm implying."

_BOOOM!_

An explosion rocked the area, with its epicenter in the direction where Quartz and Rishia had disappeared.

_Saved by the bell, or in this case Rishia__'s handiwork…_ Ryou thought as he released a breath of relief. He wouldn't consider himself to be such an idiot as to not recognize the meaning behind her words, though he was left with the question of why she had an interest in that particular topic in the first place.

_Scree!_

Squinting his eyes towards the shriek, Ryou finally had eyes on his new enemy. Over a dozen creatures flew out of the forest, about half the size of Quartz, brown plumage covered most of their bodies, besides the white head, and wings. Half-lion half-eagle, he took a moment to appreciate the creatures straight out of mythology.

"So those are gryphons huh…" Ryou commented as he extended his arm forward, "Guess it's time to go to work. Change Bow: Siderite Longbow!"

Following the command along with a golden glow, a longbow materialized itself. Almost pure golden, with a few shreds of lime green crystal, the weapon that unlocked Itsuki's favorite skill finally rested in his grip.

He had hoped that since Erhard had the shield, then maybe the blacksmith also had the Bow equivalent. His wishes were answered, and even if Erhard had explained that he didn't have a big stock when it came to bows since people ordinarily preferred melee weapons, the ones he had were all quite handy.

_Time to see if this thing is worth all the hype__…_

Placing his new bow in front of him, he took aim at the same time the monsters registered their presence, and in a moment they were dashing above the tree line, straight at them.

"Shooting Star Arrow!"

Calling out his new skill, his legendary weapon answered, as golden bolts of lighting gathered on the tip of his arrow, generating an almost blinding light, then the attack was released. More than two times wider than Ryou was tall, a blast of golden lightning reminiscent of a comet erupted forward with a roar, fracturing the ground under the Hero as it soared above the trees engulfing four of the gryphons in its path. Reaching the apex of its ascension the golden blast arced, slowing down momentarily, before crashing down on the ground like its namesake.

The remaining eagled-headed monsters stopped in their onslaught suddenly wary of the newest threat. Similarly, Ryou was busy picking his mouth off the ground, as the dust cleared, revealing nothing of the monsters that had been hit almost as if they had been vaporized by the attack, the only proof they ever existed being the experience points registered in his HUD.

"Holy Jesus…" Ryou breathed out, wide-eyed in both awe and wonder at the power he had just unleashed.

"A-Amazing…" Rifana marveled, as she too stood rooted in place at the display of strength.

_I don__'t remember this thing being anywhere near this devastating in the Anime… _Ryou regarded as he glanced at his new bow for an instant, sunlight reflecting from it.

**[Siderite Longbow - Sealed - Mastery 1/100 - Common - Equipment Bonus - + 10 Attack, Shooting Star Arrow]**

T_his thing isn__'t even powered up, like at all, so either the anime toned it down, or…_ He hesitated in drawing such a conclusion since there was no feasible way for him to compare himself to Itsuki at the moment.

"Doesn't really matter though." Ryou smirked, as he once more faced the opposition that was still hovering in the air above the forest, "I am mastering this thing asap!"

With that declaration, he broke into a short dash, before leaping. Landing sideways half-way a tree trunk, he began racing upwards until he reached the top.

"Ryou what are you doing?" Rifana shouted from below.

The Bow Hero, however, paid her no mind, as he continued to grin like a maniac and took aim once more.

"Let's turn this up a notch, shall we? Rapid Shooting Star Arrow!"

His SP took a major hit at the combination of skills, but once more lighting condensed on the tip of his arrow, yet, instead of one, three blasts were released in quick succession at varying angles, and screeching filled the air before it was dwarfed by the roaring golden blasts that reduced the gryphons into nothing but particles.

Just as he was about to release another volley, the tree he was perched on swayed drastically almost making him lose his balance. The cause became visible as a gryphon came charging, and screeching out of the forest, its golden slitted eyes locked on the weasel demi-human.

Rifana's eyes widened slightly at the beast charging towards her before they narrowed in focus, and she clapped her hands in front of her, "As source of my power I order thee. Decipher the laws of Nature, and create a wall that protects me!"

Crouching, the girl slapped both her palms on the ground as she intoned, "Faust Earth Wall!"

From the earth in front of her, a brown magical circle expanded, and the ground quaked as a square wall made of solid rock rose in front of the girl, just in time to stop the attack as the Gryphon slammed beak first into the wall with such a force that it cracked. A moment later the winged monster fell on its side twitching, as reddish foam began to escape its broken beak.

Ryou blinked at the scene watching as two hands gripped the wall from behind, a face peering between them a moment later.

Looking down almost confused Rifana observed the downed creature as its hind legs twitched lightly. With newfound confidence, she took a few steps towards it, pulling her mithril sword out of its sheath before raising it vertically above her head with a two-handed grip. The blow came down finding purchase in the gryphon's eye, coming out on the other side as the creature jerked one last time before coming to a complete stop.

The girl blinked as realization began to creep on her, and then she grinned, as she raised her sword in the air towards the Bow Hero.

"Ha! Did you see that, Ryou?"

"Well, would you look at that…" Ryou mirrored her grin with one of his own as he placed a hand on his hip, "...seems to me like someone has been learning more than just swordplay from Rishia when I wasn't looking, huh?"

"Hehehe!" Rifana giggled almost as if embarrassed as she scratched her chin with one finger. "It's like you said, we should try learning all kinds of things, right?"

Ryou nodded at her. That had been one lesson he had learned the hard way, and since then he tried to impart it to every one of his party members. The importance of some diversification, something he had lacked when he had almost became wolf food.

Nowadays he had a mix of mobility skills, crowd control, and offensive skills, he could even rely on his magic, as lackluster as it was.

It was normal for someone to specialize in one thing alone unless they were Rishia who was able to use to great effect everything she as much as touched, but jack-of-all-trades were the exception, not the majority rule, and even then he had pushed his partner to learn swordsmanship. Even Quartz with her unorthodox fighting style could change forms and could also attack in different ways all in a blink of an eye, from earth-shaking punches to bone-crushing bites or a living flamethrower if the situation called for it. As such he had tried to explain to Rifana the value of always having a backup plan, and it became apparent the girl had taken his words to heart.

His musings were interrupted as a familiar feeling developed, creating an annoying itch in the back of his head, one that had Ryou jumping sideways, not a moment too soon as the top of the tree he had been standing on was ripped apart by an almost unseen force.

Landing on top of another tree, he was quick to locate the new threat. Similar to the others, another gryphon stood higher in the air, with a visible difference- its plumage a reddish-brown, almost like wine.

The creature gave a shriek as it folded its wings in front of itself, a moment later they lashed outwards, releasing a gust of wind in his direction like an air cannon.

_So they can use magic too huh? Not all that surprising, Rishia did mention that they were at the top of the food chain along with dragons and filorials__… _The Bow Hero reminded himself, as he dodged another blast.

Landing once more, he was quick to take aim and release another Shooting Star Arrow. The skill found its target, however, his eyes narrowed, noting that unlike his other attacks, this one had only taken out a single gryphon since the other creatures had fanned out.

Smart little buggers ain'tcha? Well, two can play that game… "Change Bow: Gryphon Feathered Bow!"

With another screech the gryphons dive towards him from various angles, keeping their distance from one another.

"Rapid Air Strike Arrow Barrage!" Releasing his upgraded attack courtesy of having evolved his bow, a barrage of nine arrows flew in quick succession, though only less than half hit their intended target.

At the same time two new explosions erupted from the forest. Ryou, however, paid no attention to it as he dived towards the ground avoiding a claw that tried to rearrange his face.

Touching down, he jumped backward again, to avoid another diving monster, who slammed on the ground where he had just been standing.

The creature raised itself and released a roar that actually shook him slightly, mostly do to how threatening it sounded, a lion's roar, and a hiss mixed together, before charging.

Pulling his weapon back, Ryou slammed it against the mythical monster's open beak bringing the charge to a standstill, as the dry ground under his feet cracked from the impact.

"My attack attribute doesn't just mean I deal more damage, it affects my strength as well buddy." Ryou quipped, watching the gryphon struggling against his bow before an arrow to the mouth put the creature down for good.

The small breathing window, had him looking towards the top of the trees that composed the forest, as more and more gryphons took to the skies.

"_Quartz, you and Rishia might want to stop stirring up the hornet's nest for a little bit, things are getting a little heated over here."_ Ryou voiced in his mind but outwards.

"_Why? These birds are weak…"_ Quartz answered through their telepathic link.

"_For us maybe…"_ The Bow Hero paused, as he slapped away a claw with his bow, before following with a sidekick sending the offender crashing against a lone tree._"...but Rifana is not as strong as we are, and these things are pretty smart."_

"_Stupid birds are stupid, Onii-shama."_

Releasing a barrage of wind coated arrows, Ryou cleared another wave of diving gryphons, as he put some distance between him and the forest.

"_Do you hate anything that's bird-like?_" he questioned.

"_Bird-like? Quartz doesn't understand Onii-shama…"_

"_Nevermind just take a break... Okay?"_

"_Okay… Onee-shama is being loud again anyways…"_ There was a small amount of annoyance in his dragon's voice.

_Geez, I wonder why that is__…_ He thought sarcastically, before turning his attention to Rifana who was weaving around avoiding a gryphon's slashes, apparently trying to find an opening to attack.

The opening never came nor was needed, as an arrow punctured a fist-sized hole in the creature's head a moment later.

"Rifana! Fall back so I can take them all out at once!" Ryou ordered as he began running in the opposite direction of the forest and towards the green plains.

"Okay!" She shouted, falling in step with the Bow Hero a moment later.

A cacophony of screeches alerted Ryou to the fact that the gryphons had seen the running prey, and had given chase. Turning his head slightly he almost grinned, as the winged monsters once more bundled together in the air, and with a quick calculation he came to a stop.

"Change Bow: Balista!" He called out while turning around, and from his hand, a far greater glow shined, as his siege weapon materialized.

Hunching slightly to get a better shot, he locked on the ball composed of gryphons, trying desperately to reach him.

"Rapid Flaming Arrow!" Pressing the trigger, three flaming bolts like missiles were released, flying straight into the heart of the coming wave.

Reaching the center the projectiles detonated magnificently, and in an instant a roaring ball of fire filled the skies in front of the Bow Hero, leaving behind nothing besides falling flaming corpses unto the green plains.

_Good thing I didn__'t do this above the forest or Rishia would have given me hell…_ He chuckled to himself, dismissing his weapon, however, something else caught his attention at the corner of his view.

**[ 0 EXP Gained]**

**[ 0 EXP Gained]**

**[ 0 EXP Gained]**

"Huh, why aren't they giving experience all of the sudden?" Ryou queried with a frown.

"I'm still gaining experience though…" Rifana interjected coming up to his side, her Status Window visible in front of her.

"I was wondering what those explosions were about…" An annoyed voice came from behind Ryou, and he turned around as his eyes widened slightly.

"Ren?" Ryou asked in surprise at the sight of his fellow Hero.

Clad in his usual black and blue armor, the teen stood just a few meters from him with his arms crossed, but what truly got Ryou's attention was the mighty scowl on the Sword Hero's face.

"What exactly do you think you're doing?" The Sword Hero's words were uttered almost like an hiss, and for the life of him, Ryou couldn't understand why Ren's tone and glare seemed to regard him as his worst enemy at the moment.

_The heck is up with him..?_

* * *

_Next Chapter - Illusion's End_


	35. Ilusion's End

**A/N- **Here I am guys, a little latter then usual and I do apologize for it, but this one took a bit too finish, since it's not only slightly bigger then normal, but it had to under go a few changes.

**Important Notice - **Now, originally I was going to make a single full chapter bout Ryou's past, and what happened before he was summoned, and in some ways the origins of his Cursed Series, but then I realized, it would be kind of boring to have a single chapter just with angst on the MC, so I decided to separate it into a parts, each part will appear on the following chapters in the beginning, the is also another reason why this chapter is bigger then usual. Well _that_, and the stupid amount of build up I'm doing...

That said, it won't be super big parts, and I'am going to shorten it just enough to let you guys understand were the cursed series come from as Ryou is concerned, it will also help to show people that he is damaged in some ways, and carries scars. Sure I have alluded to it, but it's a different thing to upright show it.

Onto the next topic... Some people seemed to be rather... Worried I should say about the inclusion of the Eldrich Worms in Ryou's party. Worry not as they will be mostly used for support, and won't be considered true members of his party. They will however play their part as total bad-ass siege weapons, amount other roles... But that is in the future...

Another thing was the Shooting Star Arrow... Now funnily enough the anime as two different effects for this skill, and in the light novel the description doesn't really match up with either of them. In the LN the skill is described as an arrow that comes with stars around it that also damages whatever hits... Now I don't know how to say this, but that sounds kinda girly..? Don't want to be sexist here, but that's an attack that I imagine from a Magical Girl... Not Madoka though, since she would just blow up the Universe... Puella Magi Madoka Magic... Now there is anime that wrecked me, since I went into it blind... STupid animations tricked me into thinking it was a cute anime... Joke was on me... Kinda like RE:Zero wrecked from half-way through to the end... But that's neither here or there... My anime tastes aside, the anime version of the Shield Hero as two visuals for the skill. One is a Blue Arrow coated in golden light, and the other is a full golden blast of energy. I talk this will a reviewer and the only explanation I could rationalize for this, is that the blue arrow is showed when Itsuki is over in his head, since the attack is rather lackluster, and the Golden Blast is showed against the Pope, and it breaks a few of his barriers, and there they made the skill look cooler to show hat the Pope was being pushed back. From three the chose his one simply because the skill is a icon the the series, and it will be a crucial part of Ryou's arsenal. So if I'm going with it, I'm going with what I think is the coolest version, since it would be kind of lame for one of Ryou's main skill's to be literally a shower of golden glitter on the enemies... Killer glitter mind you, but glitter nonetheless...

Now ranting aside, let's just get on with it... Where Ryou finally meets with his fellow heroes, Malty finally executes her plan, a threat descends on Ryou and company, with more ominous signs lying in the shadows, and fate finally revels it's hand to Ryou, one that will turn anything that he though he could count on into ashes...

**Full Disclaimer -** This chapter contains scenes no explicit scenes but it contains Quartz and Motoyasu in the same scene, and Quartz and Filo also in the same scene... Just getting it out there for reasons...

* * *

**Chapter 35. Braving Into a New World - Illusion's End**

_Two-and-Half years before the summoning_

A soft if persistent clinking sound echoed, followed by some light cursing. Trying to open the door to their house while carrying bags was an arduous task, but one he had always emerged victorious, and today would be no different.

With a click, he released a breath as the door unlocked, and with his foot he pushed it open just enough for him to pass.

Dropping the bags full of groceries unceremoniously on the ground, he closed the door, one of his hand rising to his forehead.

"What is up with this heat…" He muttered to himself, as he watched his hand glistering with moisture, "...must be over forty degrees out there."

With another huff, he paused to the sound of something that resembled a laser being fired coming from further in the house. Rolling his eyes he moved towards the sound, half-expecting something obnoxious.

His hopes weren't dashed, as he crossed the boundary to their living room, and leaned against the doorway, his eyes fixated on the television.

"What exactly am I watching?" He questioned after a moment.

"Steven's Universe…" A far softer voice answered in a bored tone, from somewhere in the couch.

"Steven's what now?"

"It's a cartoon, and that over there is Steven." His sister explained as she rose a finger to point at the figure showing in the image.

"That fat kid? I guess he is the main character huh?" Ryou concluded out loud, as he continued to watch the cartoon.

"Stupid brother, he isn't fat! He is chubby!" His sister defended heatedly.

_Someone is a fan__… Wait…_ "Is that a pink jewel in his belly button?" Even his sister did not fail to pick up on the disbelief oozing from his voice.

"Yes…" She drawled almost through clenched teeth, "...That's where he gets his powers."

The oldest of the two siblings blinked slowly, as he tried to understand the logic behind such a thing. "Back in my day, main characters got their power through Ki, Chakra, Reiatsu, heck even a moon crystal made more sense than this…" He mumbled the last part to himself, however, it became apparent he hadn't been subtle enough, as a head full of untamed light brown hair shot from the couch smiling like a Cheshire cat.

"Say that again! That last part!" His sister demanded full with giddiness.

"I'm invoking my right as the oldest of the two to not comment any further." Ryou deadpanned, and even he felt amazed at how measured his tone had come out.

"Fufufufu…" His sister laugh was both forced and haughty, eerily similar to that of a villain gloating, "...I wonder how Susan is going to react when she finds out her boyfriend is a Sailor Moon fan."

_She won__'t blink an eye I guarantee you… _His girlfriend was the one responsible for him knowing the plot of far to many romantic and tragic animes, She had all but forced him to watch every single one of the ones on her watch list.

"Go right ahead, she'll laugh at most…" Ryou dismissed with a shrug, "You might think that information is worth something in the ways of blackmail, but it really isn't…"

"Muh… You're no fun…" His sister pouted, crossing her arms as she dropped back on the couch.

"Not fun huh?" He questioned as he turned around and slowly walked out of the room, yet his voice still echoed from the hallway, "So I guess I should cancel that trip to the beach that I was planning for the two of us after lunch, hmm?"

"Beach?!" Her voice came in a higher pitch, as she all but jumped off the couch, and reached the doorway in record time, "We are going to the beach?!"

Ryou turned around with a small grin tugging at the corner of his lips, "Not in your pajamas you aren't…" He pointed out.

His sister looked down at her clothing for a second, before dashing down the hallway and through a door, her voice carrying after her "I'm going to get changed!"

_Hook, line, and sinker__…_ Ryou thought in amusement. It wasn't that he wanted to go to the beach all that much, but he knew that if he left his sister have her way, she would stay in the couch for the entire week watching tv until their parents returned, though his mother also heavily shared the blame for his sister sedentary lifestyle, at least during vacation.

_I swear that woman would call the entire police force and the army if her daughter moved beyond a five-meter radius from home unsupervised__…_ Ryou sighed, as he picked the bags, and made his way to the kitchen. Their mother had always been a mother hen, though thankfully she had given up on following his every steps a year or so ago and focused most of her attention on his sister.

_Thank god for that small miracle. No more awkward silences every time she asked if I was going to Susan__'s…_ Ryou commented to himself as he removed his groceries from the bag. Ever since he had acknowledged the existence of his girlfriend to his parents, and with her becoming a regular visitor to their household, his mother had acquired the embarrassing habit of questioning him about it, something that always led to an awkward silence composed of both understanding and embarrassment. His mother wasn't an idiot and knew what exactly they were going to do during the afternoon, and he also knew his mother knew. There was never any verbal acknowledgment pertaining to it, but the realization that his own mother knew exactly what they were up too was just mortifying at least in the beginning.

"Hey Ryou! What beach are we going to?" The question came from down the hallway.

"Which one do you think?!" Ryou half-shouted.

"Yay! We are going to the lagoon! I can swim there!" His sister shouted in childish glee.

"Yeah...Like a nail!" Ryou shot back, with a grin.

"Hey! I can swim now! Father taught me last year!" She replied offended, and he released a small laugh as he pictured her annoyed face.

"I'll be the judge of that since I specifically recall an event where a small girl almost drowned in a pool!" He joked, but deep down he knew that she had already learned it, his father would have seen to that.

"Stupid brother that was years ago! I have gotten a lot better since then."

Ryou released another chuckle, as he picked another tin, and released its content into a bowl. Since they were going to the beach it would be best to only have a light lunch, especially since he doubted his sister would resist the temptation of going for a dive the moment they arrived.

_Better make some sandwiches too, since we are bound to get hungry__…_ He mused as he mixed the content in the bowl.

"Hey, brother…"

Turning around to the voice he took in the pink dress that his sister had on for a moment, "...Yeah?"

"Shouldn't they have called by now?" She asked, her eyebrows tightened closer slightly.

_Now that she mentions it... They should be more than halfway already so it is strange that mother hasn__'t called yet…_ He had been up to bid them goodbye when they had left, at an ungodly hour, since his father preferred to drive before the sun was even up.

"They probably can't get any signal." That would also be the most likely explanation. As far as he could remember his father never once took the highway, preferring to drive through the less known roads among the fields to get to his maternal grandmother's village. The old woman had been not so subtly nagging everyone that she wanted to spend some time back in the village.

His Aunt had ditched the idea almost immediately using some half-assed excuse, but Ryou knew the truth. She wanted to enjoy her vacations freely, but that was a common theme with her. She would always find a reason to not have to deal with her old mother, every single time.

With that, the responsibility to take his grandmother to her home village had fallen once more on his parents shoulders.

"But are you really complaining though?" Ryou asked after a minute of contemplation, banishing the thoughts he rather keep to himself.

"No! The less nagging she does the better, I just found it strange that's all."

"Hmm...Don't worry she will definitely call when they get there," He assured, as his eyes moved towards the bowl.

"Now… How about some lunch?"

* * *

_Present_

Looking towards his fellow hero who seemed to be regarding him with nothing short of contempt, Ryou blinked in confusion.

The moment of silence only made the frown on the Sword Hero's face worse, "I'll ask again." He repeated in a low tone, "What do you think you are doing Ryou?"

The tone shook Ryou out of his fuzz and rattled something inside of him, as he returned the glare with one of his own, "I have an even better question. What exactly crawled up your ass and died there?"

"You…" Ren growled.

"Seriously! I know we aren't even close to being friends, but it has been over a month since we last saw each other and the first thing you do is act like I murdered your pet goldfish in cold blood!" He commented slightly aggravated.

"That's because you're KSing me!" Ren exploded, pointing one finger at the Bow Hero.

_Wait ? What? Kill Steal..?_

"You know…" Ryou began as he closed his eyes briefly in annoyance, "...we both come from a different world, so I don't know if the definition in mine is the same as in your world, but I don't think that means what you think it means."

"Kill stealing is kill stealing no matter in what world! The fact that you know what it means proves it!" The Sword Hero replied, as he cut the air in front of him with his hand. "I took this quest! I was here first! You can't just walk in and try to steal it from me!"

"Didn't this happen before? I have a feeling this happened before... Like I'm having the biggest sense of Deja Vu ever…" Ryou muttered to himself before locking eyes with the irritated teen, "Look I'm not trying to steal your quest or whatever you're thinking. I was legitimately hired for it…"_ As far as one can call it legitimate when that Shadow Maid is involved,_ "...heck I even talked with the noble of this region like two hours ago and she gave me the green light for it."

Surprise seemed to come over the Sword Hero's face, then his expression dropped and he looked to the side, "You talked to Lady Adamalys huh..?"

"Yes…" Ryou confirmed slowly, narrowing his eyes in suspicion as he watched the Sword Hero.

"I...I see…" The Sword Hero replied, all irritation gone from him, leaving only behind only a mumbling teen.

"What's this really about Ren?"

_It can__'t be about the money…_ He concluded. While thirty gold could be considered a hefty amount, between his dragon based-potions, ore selling and drops Ryou could easily make that amount with a little bit of time, and he knew that the Sword Hero could too, especially since unlike him, Ren did had some manner of knowledge on where the best hunting grounds were and such. Ryou also didn't think it would be about taking credit for it, since unlike the previous Bow Hero, Ren didn't seem the kind to lavish in praise, at least not to the extent that Itsuki did.

"Isn't it obvious? I already told you I got here first, so this quest belongs to me!" Fire seemed to return to the teen as he almost shouted.

"By your own logic you're still the one in the wrong here, since as far as MMORPG's go, you would be hard-pressed to find a quest that was reserved for one single person and since I didn't get the memo from Aultcray stating that this entire area now belonged to you, I say it's free game!" Ryou shot back with a scowl.

"That's not how this works! We have exclusive rights to quests! You can't compare this world where there are only four of us to a game with thousands of players!" Ren countered.

_Lady Irony you are not lost to me__…_ " You're the one that started with the comparisons when you said I was KSing you, which by the way is bullshit since KS implies that someone comes and steal kills from you, and since I was gaining experience before, that proves that you weren't in fact here, and only just arrived, so technically I was never KSing you."

"That's not the point!" He shouted, stomping on the ground in aggravation.

_Ohh for fuck sakes__…_"If it's not the point then why did you even brought it up in the first place?!" Ryou demanded as he threw his hands in the air in an exasperated fashion.

"It doesn't matter! What matters is that you are ruining everything!" The Sword Hero cried out.

I_sn__'t he supposed to be the most reasonable of the three stooges? I feel like I just lost whatever faith I had in him, and it wasn't even that much to begin with…_

"Who is this person?" Rifana asked loudly, tired of being in the side-lines.

"Someone annoying." He replied dismissively, "Ignore him and maybe he will go away."

"A-Annoying?!" The teen stuttered in unconcealed anger," I'm the Sword Hero you noob!"

"This?! This bratty kid is the Ken-no Yuusha?" Rifana deadpan.

Ryou however couldn't help but to find once more the irony in the situation.

_You call him bratty but weren__'t you acting just like him a few minutes ago?_

"You! Who the hell are you to call me that?" Ren demanded.

"Me?" She asked pointing to herself, "I'm Rifana, and I'm the person not acting like a spoiled brat."

"I don't have to hear this from a two-bit half skunk" Ren shot back with a huff.

"S-Skunk?!" She stuttered, "I'm half weasel you jerk!"

"Sounds all the same to me." He countered with a shrug.

"Not only are you a spoiled brat, but you're also brain dead and blind to boot, I see!" Rifana declared.

"I don't have time for this." Ren rebuked, as he looked towards the Bow Hero, "Ryou you should really learn to control your minions better."

However, Ryou did not have the time to answer, since Rifana cut right in the middle of them coming to a stop almost at breathing distance from the Sword Hero.

"At least he as minions to control!" She announced almost mockingly, "You on the other hand look like a lonely boy with his ego, and apparently, you can't even control that!"

"You…" Ren growled glaring at the demi-human girl, who responded in kind locking gazes with the teen.

_I think I just got benched on this one... And is that lightning between them? What exactly am I seeing here..?_ Ryou questioned as he watched the battle of wills.

" You know... I'm a huge fan of the Legendary Yuushas. I have been since I was a kid, I have read every legend I could get my hands on, and I can only say I have never been so disappointed in my life!"

"I'll be sure to tell you when your opinion starts mattering to me." Ren shot back patronizingly.

At those words, Rifana's glare hardened, "Well maybe it should! Weren't you summoned here to save lives?" She asked rhetorically, continuing before the Sword Hero could offer a response, "Because as it stands you're only accomplishing the opposite of that."

"Huh?" He uttered in confusion.

The Bow Hero just watched from his place a little further away. He knew were Rifana was going with it, and while he wanted to call her out on the fact they had been summoned against their will, he didn't, because deep down this was something the Sword Hero needed to hear.

"Yes, you heard me right! While you're here throwing a fit like a little kid, you seem to be conveniently forgetting that those things have already caused a lot of deaths, and instead of doing the reasonable thing and help us save lives, you're far more worried about getting the rights to your quest! Acting like that does not only makes you a sorry excuse for a Yuusha but it also makes you a sorry excuse for a human being!" Rifana declared with a tone of finality.

_She really doesn__'t hold back, does she? Ryou winced, On one side I'm proud she is standing up for what she believes in, on the other I think hanging out with Quartz as rubbed her in a wrong way, she's gotten way too blunt in such a short amount of time... And, that was a critical hit if I ever saw one..._ It showed, as Ren's face paled, and he completely lost any anger he had leaving behind only shame.

"I…" He hesitated as words failed him, his eyes going to the ground.

"Honestly…" She huffed shaking her head, her eyes soften a fraction as her hand came to rest on her hip, "Growing up as a demi-human, I always looked up to the Legendary Yuushas… As the oppressed race in Melromarc, you guys were ours… My shining symbol of hope. The symbol that stood for everything good and righteous. Valiant, strong, humble but above everything else kind… Ryou once told me that I should moderate my expectations, but that's hard to do when you spend your entire childhood idolizing someone, so it really sucks when I finally get to meet my heroes, the ones I have always look up to, and I'm left with nothing but disappointment…"

_Never meet your heroes, because they are sure to disappoint you__…_ The saying from his previous world had never rang more true then it did at that moment. The situation happening in front of him had been exactly what Ryou had wanted to avoid for himself. Because there more expectations grew, the easier it would be to disappoint someone, and to have people demanding responsibility.

"I just wanted to prove myself…" Ren muttered still looking down.

_Is he sulking? The hell is up with him__…_ The actions from the Sword Hero filled him with nothing but confusion. While condescending, he had always perceived Ren as a collected if aloof teen for the most part, at least as long as above knee high water wasn't involved, but now he could hardly keep up with the Sword Hero's mood swings.

"Prove yourself?" Rifana asked as she tilted her head to the side, "Too who?"

Ren's eyes widened as he flushed, and he moved his head to avoid her gaze muttering something that Ryou failed to pick up, however, Rifana didn't, as realization hit her and she closed her eyes.

"I see... So that's what this is about…" She commented with a trace of annoyance.

"You know?" Ryou finally joined the conversation again, his toned laced with curiosity.

"Yeah, I know…" She continued, her voice still oozing with annoyance, "...It seems that the Ken-no Yuusha as come up with a severe case of being love-struck…"

_L-Love-struck?!_ "Hahahahaha!" Ryou laugh out loud at the preposterous idea, "There's no way that's tru…" His words came to a halt as his eyes fell on the Sword Hero, whose face went critical with embarrassment before he covered it with his hands.

_No way__…_

"Y-Y-You're kidding, right? You're screwing with me aren't you?" Ryou asked almost perplexed, as he watched the Sword Hero release another mumble.

"Ahh…" Rifana sighed, "It seems he has become a victim to that woman's wiles…"

_There is just no way__… Ren of all people? REN?! He doesn't give anyone the time of the day! The only person I remember him giving any attention too was Eclair! When she was royally kicking his ass!_ Ryou screamed in his mind, however, the more he looked at the Sword Hero's mortification at having his not so secret crush discovered, the more real the situation became.

_Did he actually fall for a random Noblewoman ruling a village in the middle of nowhere?! _In Ryou's mind, it wasn't like there was anything special about Adamalys. Sure that by all accounts she was both beautiful, and had an air of gracefulness that reflected her lineage and upbring.

But it isn't like she brings anything to the table that every single one of us hasn't seen… If one was to talk about straight up attractiveness then there was no shortage of it. Ryou would almost go as far as to say that there were too many attractive women around the heroes, so much that one could even get desensitized to it. In any party, there was a member like that. Naofumi had Raphtalia. Motoyasu had a harem of pretty girls, even Rino who didn't flair herself, had a huge cute if petite factor going for her. He had Rishia who was both beautiful, and had an amazing if carrying personality going for her, eccentricities aside, even Rifana was on a fast track to match her best friend in looks if her growth was of any indication.

But as he thought about all the females in their circle, a realization begun to dawn on him. Ren didn't give the time of the day to anyone, but the reverse was also true. Even Malty who would flirt with a wooden pole if it suited her, had her eyes locked on Motoyasu, and hardly paid attention to the Sword Hero as far as Ryou was aware.

_And if by some cosmic joke, where all the planets and stars align themselves, a random attractive woman with huge assets appears, and starts flirting and throwing compliments his way like she did with me, then maybe... Just maybe__…_

It actually made sense in his mind in a weird manner. Ren in Ryou's mind, like Naofumi, had at one point been nothing more than a one-dimensional character. But here, in this world he existed, he was a breathing human being with every emotion and feeling that humans had, and for everything that Ren might have been, he was still a highschooler, and probably one that had yet to experience any kind of intimate relationship, so it probably would be easy for Adamalys to worm her way into his heart, if she brought up her A-game to the table.

_Still__…_ Looking at the embarrassed Sword Hero, and at Rifana's annoyed and slightly disgusted expression, Ryou felt a wave of crescent irritation slowly but steadily creeping on him.

"Let me see if I got this straight..." Ryou began softly, as his eyebrow twitched, "... You're telling me that the reason why you acted like a condescending asshole was because you wanted to complete this quest by yourself so that you could show you're random crush, who I bet you probably only just met, how courageous and gallant you were, all the while taking your sweet time and ignoring that this is in fact, a dire situation in need of your full attention... Did I get it right?"

"Huuhhh…" Ren half-moaned half-grunted in consternation.

"I see… So I pretty much nailed it." He commented lowly with a sniffle, nodding to himself twice as he realized what it had to be done before approaching the Sword Hero with fast and steady steps.

_Wham!_

Rifana visibly winced as the Bow Hero's hand made contact with the back of the teen's head sending him face planting into the ground.

A moment later Ren half raised himself snarling, "The hell Ryou!?

However, Ryou was beyond himself, as he crouched in front of the Sword Hero and grabbed his collar snarling right back, "You Idiot! When I think you guys can't sink any lower you still manage to find a way to surprise me! You were there when I told Motoyasu to start thinking things through, but it went right above your head didn't it?! The only thing I ever asked of you idiots was that you started using your heads, but I meant the one above your shoulders not the one under your belt!"

"Ryou…" Rifana moaned as she placed a hand on her face, even then her cheeks still gained some color.

The Sword Hero stuttered once more trying to come up with words, but Ryou shook him harshly, "Seriously! I half-expected this kind of crap from Motoyasu, but I always thought you were at least above crap like this!"

"What's this about me?"

A voice cut through Ryou's tirade, and both him and Ren turned their heads to look at a confused Spear Hero standing just behind Rifana.

_It__'s official… Someone out there hates me…_ Ryou concluded as his eyebrow continued to twitch.

* * *

Her eyes were focused on the front, refusing to look back. She knew what was about to happen, and couldn't bear to look at Rino's hopeful face as the small girl happily trailed after them locked in a conversation with Lesty.

The moment they had arrived at Ehrenhalf Village, the Spear Hero had moved to go visit the noble in charge, and that had been the start of the princess's plan. Malty had convinced the blond young man that they would only be in his way, and wanted to spend her time shopping.

The Spear Hero hardly batted an eye at it, and actually encouraged such a decision. Rino had been the only voice of discord, stating that she wanted to help the Hero with his quest, however, the small petite girl's fate had been sealed when not only Motoyasu but Malty managed to sway her.

She felt sick when she saw the princess extending her hand to Rino inviting her along, with one of the best, and most pleasant smiles she had ever seen in her face.

Having been an outcast in their party for so long, the invitation from Malty had seemed like an olive branch to the innocent girl, and an opportunity to finally mesh with them.

Elena's eyes moved to the princess's back, as she watched the redhead walk in front of her with a spring in her step, humming to herself.

_A demon in human clothing__… I really don't want to be a part of any of this…_ She had always managed to avoid being pulled in every time Malty decided to deal with one of their party members. She knew it would only be a matter of time before the princess got what was coming to her, either by her mother's hand or by pissing off the wrong person, as such it would be better to have plausible deniability when her time finally arrived. However this time it would have looked too suspicious if she had tried to get away, so now she had to bear witness.

"This way Rino-chan." Malty chirped, as she pointed towards an alley.

"Huh, through there?" Rino questioned as her eyebrows knitted in confusion peering into the humid, and almost ominous passageway.

A hand landed on her shoulder, and she turned to look at the happy smile in the princess's face as she nodded, "Yes, it's a shortcut that will take us to one of the best shops in Ehrenhaft."

"Really?" The small mage questioned once more still in doubt.

"Really…" Malty confirmed as she pushed the girl lightly on the shoulder towards the alley… "I'm sure you will love that shop… As if it were your second home."

Taking a few steps into the narrow passage, Rino smiled, "If you say so Malty-ch! Guh!" A gasp escaped the petite mage, as a spasm coursed through her body, and she pitched forward, dropping like a puppet whose strings were cut.

"Hahahahahah! It really works fast!" Malty laughed, as she raised a small dagger to eye level, the weapon she had used to deliver a small cut to the other girl's arm.

"M-Malty-cha…" Rino slurred before her tongue got tied and she lost the ability to speak.

The redhead smirked, as she rolled the girl with one foot so she could look at her face, and released another laugh as she saw Rino's eyes moving franaticly in fear, but unable to move anything else.

"You're probably wondering why... Aren't you Rino?" The princess asked softly, as she lowered herself to a crouch, a hand moving to cup Rino's small chin.

Fearful forest green eyes, met a pair of cruel almost lime ones, as the princess lowered her face locking gazes with the smaller girl.

"This is because you got in the way of the next queen of Melromarc, or did you think hogging Motoyasu-sama's time just for yourself would go without punishment?" The first princess demanded, as her grip tightened.

Rino's eyes swam with confusion wanting to say anything in her defence but unable too do so.

Letting go of Rino's chin, Malty raised herself, as she threw her hair back in a haughty manner, "Well that said, I'm not without mercy, so in honor of the time we spend as party members, I decided to find you a new job."

Lesty lost it at that, as she laughed behind them. Elena however had her back to the whole scene unable to stomach what was happening.

"Yes…" The princess continued, a cruel smile taking over her face, "Since you were so good at monopolizing Motoyasu-sama's time, I decided to get you a job where that particular skill will do wonders for you."

"It's truth Rino-chan! You will spend the rest of your life hogging other men's time! Just not Motoyasu-sama's." Lesty joked as she continued to laugh.

The petite mage's eyes widened in fear, as a sinking realization begun to creep on her.

"That is, if you can even survive your first customer. Fuse will definitely give you an experience you won't ever forget, though I'm rooting for you Rino!" Malty quipped, as she grasped a handful of auburn hair, and pulled the girl slightly up, her hat dropping to the ground.

The petite mage closed her eyes but even that wasn't enough to stop the cascade of tears that were running down her face.

"Now come along!" Malty said, as she dragged the petite girl by the hair and deeper into the alley, "You're new home awaits!"

Through the pain, Rino still opened her eyes and caught a final blurry gaze of Elena's expression, one full of regret.

_Elena, please__…_The girl begged in her mind, however, her heart broke when her only hope, closed her own eyes in resignation and moved her head to the side.

_Forgive me... Rino__…_

* * *

"Well?" Motoyasu asked, tilting his head to the side.

_When was it that this became a Legendary Heroes party. and why wasn__'t I informed.._? Ryou inquired himself as he released the Sword Hero's colar. "Don't tell me you are also here for the quest?" He deflected somewhat.

Raising and dusting himself, Ren sent Ryou a side glare, before turning his attention to the Spear Hero, who blinked twice, before releasing a grin.

"That's right!" He exclaimed resting his spear against his shoulder, "I, Motoyasu am here to save this village from the gryphons!"

"Oh! Not you too!" Ren exploded from Ryou's side, "Don't you guys have anything better to do than to steal my quests?!"

"Ohh brother…" Ryou muttered to himself before raising his voice, "Are we really going back to that topic?"

His question however was mostly ignored.

"What do you mean your quest? If anything it's my quest!" Motoyasu declared with a frown, before opening his status window. A moment later an embroidered fancy looking parchment fell on his hand, and he waved it in the air, "See here! This is an official document from his majesty asking me to deal with the gryphons!"

"Tsk!" Ren crossed his arms, as he looked from the paper to the Spear Hero's face," I can't read what's in there, so it could be a cooking recipe for all I know."

"What?! It's an official document! Official I say!" Motoyasu argued back.

"Seems pretty legit to me," The Bow Hero added, as he narrowed his eyes to read what was on the parchment, and at first glance from what he could understand it did seem like an official document.

"Like you can read it." The teen dismissed with a hiss.

Ryou frowned as he looked towards the youth, "Actually I can and it seems official to me."

"It is," Rifana added from their side as she pointed to a place at the bottom of the parchment, "That. You see? That's the official magical stamp from the crown."

"See! Even they agree with me! Besides I got authorization from the lady in charge to complete this quest and everything!" Motoyasu explained as he stored the document back in his inventory.

"Huh… So you met with Lady Adamalys too…" Ren muttered.

The blond young man nodded, "Yeah I did, and let me tell you she's really hot!" He added with a smile.

Ren's head shot up at that, with a withering glare, "You stay away from her Motoyasu!"

The smile from the Spear Hero's face turned confused, "Why should I? You like her or something?"

"L-L-Like?!" Ren stuttered, and maybe it was the sunlight but Ryou would almost swear that the Sword' Hero's face had gained some color.

Slowly but surely a grin formed on Motoyasu's face. "Oh, I see how it is…" He nodded to himself almost satisfied with his own conclusion, "So under all that coolness, flows the blood of a male in the springtime of his youth huh?"

"I-It's not what you think!" The youngest of the heroes cried out as he took a step back, waving his hands in the air, in a manner that reminded Ryou of his partner when she was embarrassed.

"Come now... There's no need to deny it." Motoyasu mused shaking his head as he moved in closer to the Sword Hero and hooked an arm over his shoulder, "I completely understand. But leave it all to Big Brother Motoyasu! I'll give you some advice that will get you doing it in no time!"

_Did this turn into a rom-com comedy when I wasn__'t looking? Why the heck are we even having this conversation in the first place?_

"Like hell would I ever take advice from you!" Ren shouted as he shoved the other hero away.

"That as to be the wisest decision you've made since you were summoned here…" Ryou offered from the side.

Motoyasu's eyes went from Ren to Ryou, "Why?! What's wrong with me?!"

_What isn__'t?!_ The words echoed inside of Ryou and Ren's head at the same time.

"Come on guys! I'll let you in on a secret…" Motoyasu voice dropped a fraction lower as he cupped his mouth with his hand, "I've already done it…"

_Thank you for the mental image__… Praise the lord that you're not here to listen to this shit Naofumi…_ Ryou closed his eyes in disgust, however, a pull on the hem of his shirt had him opening them a moment later.

"Ryou… This person… Is he the one you spoke before?" Rifana asked almost hesitantly.

"Yeah."

"Haaaa… I see what you meant back then."

"Yeah… He's also the Spear Hero by the way." Ryou added as an afterthought.

"Huhhhhh..." Rifana moaned as her head dropped.

"You can't say I didn't warn you though." The Bow Hero reminded her with a shrug.

"I know, I know. It's just… I didn't think it would be this bad…" She admitted, "At this point, I'm almost afraid of meeting the Tate-no Yuusha-sama you know?"

"You should!" Motoyasu interjected as his head snapped in their direction, "A fair lady like you should absolutely not go near that guy! He is the worst, and he will do unspeakable things to you!"

"U-U-Unspeakable things?" Rifana stuttered with a hint of fear in her voice.

"Ohh shut up Motoyasu." Ryou interrupted with an eye roll, "Don't listen to him Rifana. The worst Naofumi will do to you is scowl, and that's part of his to go facial expression so don't take it to heart if he does."

"No, listen to me!" The Spear Hero urged as he approached the demi-human girl, " He will definitely abuse you until you have nothing else to offer!"

"You mean like he abused Raphtalia until she had nothing else to offer?" Ryou supplied, before snapping his fingers, "Ohh wait! But last time I checked she was growing into a fine young lady if I say so myself. Healthy as a horse too. Boy, it really did appear as he was abusing her alright…"

"T-That's because he is using the slave seal to trick her into believing everything is fine!"

_This crap again..? _

"Uhhh…" Rifana hesitantly raised her hand in the air, "...slave seals don't really work like that."

_Thank You Rifana! Truly! For being the voice of reason!_ Ryou shouted in his head.

"How do you know that exactly?" The Sword Hero asked narrowing his eyes.

The Demi-human girl however sent him a look that seemed to question his intelligence, "I'm a demi-human… In Melromarc… Nine out of ten demi-humans in this country are slaves, and so was I before Ryou freed me."

"Ohh…" Ren uttered as his eyes soften just a fraction.

"Yeah…"

"It's a shield I bet! A brainwashing shield!" Motoyasu insisted from his place, as he shook his weapon in agitation.

Everyone, even the Sword Hero sent him a dubious look at the declaration.

_Are we really that far gone already?_ "A Brainwashing Shield? Really?" Ryou inquired, tone oozing with sarcasm, "So if he has access to that kind of power, why is he still living like a traveling merchant just to cover his expenses instead of brainwashing the king and living like one?"

Motoyasu mouth open and closed like a fish as he tried to come up with a counter-argument, but Ryou raised his palm in the air.

"Motoyasu just stop. You're going to suffocate under all that straw you're pulling." Ryou chided as he rubbed his face with his other hand, "Is it really that hard to believe, that someone would actually follow Naofumi out of loyalty alone?"

"That's impossible! No one would do that after what he..!"

"Onii-shama we're back, and Quartz brought a gift." A soft voice interrupted whatever the Spear Hero was going to say, as a small girl came out of the woods, dragging two corpses of gryphons by their tails.

The bush rattled some more, and Rishia soon followed, but stop when her eyes fell on the present company.

"Fuee! Motoyasu-sama and Ren-sama!" She exclaimed in surprise.

Looking towards the prize Quartz had dragged along, that sported two different colorations, Ryou couldn't help but to smile, "Good job Quartz."

"Ohh...Ohhhhh! Ohhhhhhh!" A strange sound escaped the Spear Hero's mouth, a mixture between a sound of admiration and a yelp, as his eyes widened, and locked in on the smaller girl.

_Here we go__… _Ryou declared in veiled disgust as he watched Motoyasu march towards Quartz, however another pull on the hem of his shirt stole his attention once more.

"Ryou… You said Raphtalia-chan was doing well for herself, but what the Yari-no Yuusha-sama said just now... Is she really doing alright?" Rifana questioned, worry over her best friend at the forefront of her mind.

Raising his hand he patted her on the head twice, "Don't worry about her, she's doing just fine." He assured with a small smile," I wouldn't lie to you about that."

"It's true that what I saw after the duel points to what you were saying." The Sword Hero reasoned as he took a couple of steps towards the duo. "However this as been bothering me since then… After what he as done, why did you defended him back then, and why do continue to do it?" He asked, confusion and doubt lingering in his mind.

The Bow Hero turned his attention towards the teen for a moment, before closing his eyes briefly. He knew it wouldn't change anything, they had already formed their opinion on Naofumi, nothing would change that. Only when his innocence was proven in front of the entire country would Ren believe it.

_Just another one of those events that are fated to happen__…_ Ryou had never been a huge believer in fate, but now, having spent entire nights musing over the topic he couldn't help but consider that something like a convergence point might actually exist. A point in time where no matter the actions before, it would all lead to that inevitable event.

While he had done nothing to help Naofumi, his existence hadn't change anything concerning the accusation, and everything had come to pass as it should have. However later he had tried to interfere with the duel, and yet the events that followed had also come to pass exactly as he remembered them.

There were some things he couldn't explain, such as Gentlewood acting far sooner than he should have, or the adicional boss in the wave. Even Rifana's current existence and the extended time between the waves were things that escaped his understanding, and the only thing he could gather was that those were nothing more than ripples that his existence had brought upon.

_But at the end of the day they don__'t matter at all if some outcomes are already written in stone…_ He admitted, though he didn't exactly knew what defined an event as unchangeable.

_I suppose at the very least I should give it a try... If nothing else, I owe Naofumi that much__… _He finished as his eyes snapped open.

"Ren… There are always two sides to a story, and you never asked for his…" He stated softly as he turned to look at the sky, "No… You just accept it as it was and that was that. Since it didn't have anything to do with you, you immediately cleaned your hands off of it without bothering to find out if it was the truth or not."

_Just like me only in a different way..._

"You weren't there but I know, that you are aware of the trial. During that time, not once did he ever denied it." Ren countred, "Isn't that the same as admitting that he was guilty?"

Taking the clear blue skies, Ryou let his thoughts move to the Shield Hero for a moment, "Perhaps… But you have to consider that everyone was accusing him, and declaring him guilty. Even you guys jumped on that bandwagon without a second thought, so I reckon at that time Naofumi realized that even if he tried to deny it, no one would believe him."

Ren took a moment to digest the words as his eyes narrowed slightly. "The way you are saying that... It's like you believe he is innocent."

"I do…" Ryou confirmed, as he once more locked eyes with the Sword Hero for an instant.

"Do you have proof to support that belief?" He asked tilting his head slightly.

"It's all around us actually, you just have to open your eyes to see it…" Ryou stated as his gaze went to Quartz and Motoyasu for a moment, "...you're smart Ren, smarter than that idiot over there, so if you really want to find the truth then next time you meet Naofumi ask for his side of the story. If you do that and put together the pieces, you will see that this tower of lies against him will fall faster than Jenga."

The Sword Hero crossed his arms, and took on a thoughtful expression, as his mind wandered back to the trial, "Looking back we only had circumstantial proof at best, along with the word of a single person, and I did thought it was a little suspicious for the princess to try and pass for an adventurer. I suppose she could have been trying to hide her identity so she wouldn't be treated any different do to her lineage or something like that, though from what I have observed, that doesn't seem to fit with her personality."

Ryou raised an eyebrow in slight surprise at the Sword Hero's observation.

_So he as been paying at least a little attention to what's going on__…_

Shuffling a little in place Ren continued, "But like I said he never denied it, and the next time he appeared he was walking around with another attractive woman, that conveniently happened to be his slave. What conclusion was I supposed to gather from that if not the obvious?"

"Fair is fair I suppose, but at the very least you should have gathered your facts before forming a definite conclusion." Ryou pointed out in a measured tone, "Also you seem to be forgetting that he didn't have much of a choice. I hate… No, I abhor the concept of slavery, the thought of a human being owning another is sickening, nevertheless, I can't fault Naofumi for doing it, since he didn't have a choice. Ask yourself this... After the information got out, who would ever party with him?"

"He could have just moved to another country though."

"You make it sound easy but the closest country is the one on the other side of that forest." Rifana stated joining the conversation as she pointed towards the mentioned forest, "That's also no man's land for the most part. Not counting this one the closest ones, where you can actually find people are the Northern Territory, and Shieldfreeden and those are two weeks by carriage."

_I wonder where she got that information__… Is she studying topography with Rishia?_ Ryou questioned before deciding to leave that train of thought for another time. "Rifana is right, and a carriage costs money. Money that he didn't have."

"Transportation doesn't cost all that much. You can easily make that amount in a day." Ren noted furrowing his eyes.

"Sure you can, if you know how to make money, but you are conveniently forgetting a few other factors, like the fact that similarly to me, Naofumi never played a game that resembled this world, so he didn't know any efficient ways of making money back then, and it's not like he could just hunt monsters for it, he is the Shield Hero remember? That means almost no offensive capabilities, and no party members to do it for him." Ryou explained before shifting his weight to another leg, "So that leaves him with traveling on foot, and since you actually played a game that resembles this world, tell me… What are the odds of a level one shielder, without the means to increase his level or make money, as of making it to another country alive, or even before the wave rubber bands him back into the middle of Melromarc?"

The Sword Hero had the decency of looking just a little embarrassed, "When you put it like that, it does sound logical." He mumbled.

"So you see, Naofumi didn't bought Raphtalia because he had any weird kinks or something, he bought her because he didn't have any other choice if he wanted to survive." Ryou finished.

"I see…" Ren muttered to himself before his eyes widen at something fast approaching.

_Fhroooshhh!_

Releasing a yelp, the Sword Hero raised his arms to protect his face, as a wave of heat hit him, courtesy of a jet of flames that passed just a few meters from him.

* * *

_A couple of minutes earlier…_

Crouching on one knee, the Spear Hero gently grasped one of the girl's hands in both of his, his eyes filled with nothing but adoration.

_To think that I would find a girl just like Freon-chan!_ The Spear Hero though in almost ecstasy, as his eyes took in the bat-like wings sprouting from the small girls back.

_Even if one that looks like her fallen angel form..._

"Little lady, may I have the honor of knowing your name?

Quartz tilted her head to the side, "Quartz's name is Quartz, and Quartz is a dragon."

"So Quartz-chan is a dragon huh? That's adorable."Motoyasu chuckled, "So what do you like to do Quartz-chan?"

The small girl tilted her head upwards as she placed a finger on her chin in a thoughtful manner, "Hmmm… Quartz likes to eat. She likes slow monsters best, but the rock monsters suck!"

_Slow monsters..? Rock monsters..? What..?_ The Spear Hero considered as he blinked slowly.

"...Quartz also likes to sleep with Onii-shama and Onee-shama."

"Haaa… Onii-shama? That's Ryou isn't it?" He asked hesitantly.

The small girl nodded, "Onii-shama is Onii-shama."

"So he is like your older brother then?" The blond young man asked in clarification.

"Onii-shama is family, and Onee-shama is also family, and there's Rifana-Onee-shama, and Onee-sama father too, they are also part of Quartz's family, and Quartz's minions are family too."The small dragon enumerated as she raised her small fingers.

_Minions..? Is she talking about the worms?_ Rishia thought furrowing her eyebrows slightly.

"I see,.. You have a big family then. That's good!" Motoyasu chirped happily, then cupping his hand over his mouth he asked, "What about dislikes?"

"Quartz hates stupid birds!" She exclaimed with a little bit of heat raising her fist in the air.

"Ohhh! I also hate those stupid birds!" He also exclaimed as he clapped his hand over her fist in agreement, "They really are stupid aren't they?"

"Yes! Quartz thinks she should just eat them all!"

"Fuee! Quartz-chan! Please!" Rishia chastised lightly.

"Yes! They should all be roasted like chickens!" Motoyasu declared to the heavens, receiving a nod from the small dragon girl.

"Fuee! Motoyasu-sama please don't encourage her, or s-she will cause trouble!" Rishia exclaimed. Already Quartz had a habit of roaring at every Filorial she came across, so the last thing they needed would be for her to actually immolate them on sight.

"Rishia-chan let me tell you something…" He murmured as he lowered his head, his hair hiding his face from view for a few moments as he shook slightly, "Those birds…"

Rishia inched a little closer to him, but jumped back as he sprung from his place roaring to the skies, "Those birds are the spawns of the devil!"

"Fueee! D-D-Devil?" She questioned unable to understand how could someone equate the usual chirpy and cute creatures to something evil.

"The devil! They have it out for me I say!" He declared with anger as he turned to the green-haired girl, his ponytail brushing against Quartz's nose, as she gave a small snifle, her eyes narrowing a fraction.

"You're blond…" Quartz stated as she considered something.

At her statement, Motoyasu stopped his rant and blinked, grasping a few strands of his hair between his fingers as he nodded, "Why yes, since birth. Why do you ask Quartz-chan?"

Quartz however ignored the question, "You're also tall…" She said mostly to herself.

Motoyasu blinked again as he straightened himself, and flexed a little, "Yes I'm quite tall! That's because I always finished my milk, and so should you if you want to grow into a tall and beautiful lady!"

"If she grows any bigger we won't be able to feed her!" The green-haired mage exclaimed as she clapped her face between her hands in slight horror.

"Rishia-chan she is clearly growing, so it's just normal for her to eat a lot. I was the same too!" Motoyasu explained with a free smile.

"I-I don't think that's exactly the same…" She mumbled to herself.

"You also have a stupid smile on your face…" Quartz continued as her face lightened up.

"S-S-Stupid smile?!" The Spear Hero cried out in shock.

The small girl nodded to herself, "Onee-shama, Quartz found tall, blond, and stupid looking!" She almost chirped as she pointed to Motoyasu.

"Fuee! Quartz-chan don't!" Rishia cried out as she saw Quartz puffing her cheeks and rearing back slightly.

"Who was it that told you th... WAHHHHHH!" Motoyasu cried out, his voice turning into a high-pitch scream as he was engulfed in a conflagration of flames that erupted from the small girl's lips.

The flames passed leaving a screaming and hopping Spear Hero trying desperately to put out the flames that were spreading through his hair.

"Onii-shama, Quartz sneezed on the tall, blond, and stupid looking person." The small girl declared as her eyes turned to the Bow Hero almost expectantly.

She didn't have to wait long, as Ryou blinked taking in the sight, and then exploded in laughter, hands flying to hold his stomach as he doubled over, "Hahahahahahahaha! G-Good job Quartz!"

"Fueee! Ryou don't encourage her!"

"Quartz was praised…" She chirped with a small turn of her lips before her eyes widen as she remembered something. A moment later she was puffing her cheeks, and another pillar of flames erupted from her lips, bathing the Spear Hero who had only just finished putting out the flames, once more.

Raising her small hand over her eyes, Quartz gave a tiny salute towards the howling Bow Hero, "Double-tapping confirmed Onii-shama!"

"Hahahahahaha! S-Shit, I'm dying over here!" Ryou howled as he fell on his rear, "D-Drop and roll Motoyasu! Drop and roll!" He roared falling backwards, as the Spear wielder dropped on the floor rolling, his hands attempting to put out the flames that were creeping on his pristine hair.

Rifana just raised a hand to her face, but even then a small strangled sound escaped her, as she tried to keep her shoulders from shaking. Even the Sword Hero turned to look at the side, hiding his face from the present company but the small tremors from his shoulders gave him away.

"Master! Look! Spear guy is on fire!" A childish voice chirped, from just behind Ryou, and he realized then that something was covering the sun. Something white, large, and fluffy looking.

"I can see that…" A far more familiar voice echoed, one that had an underlying tone of amusement.

"Naofumi…" The Sword Hero mumbled with some reservation, as he watched the Shield Hero seated on the front of his carriage, chin laying on his palm with a rather satisfied smirk on his lips before his eyes moved to take in the rest of the present company.

"What are you idiots doing here?" The Shield bearer asked in confusion.

"Nice to see you too…" Ryou grunted as he raised himself, his eyes moving to the pink-feathered Filorial Queen, that seemed rather bored for a few moments before moving back to the Shield Hero, "...But if you really want to know, I came here for a quest, then somehow that changed into a debate over Ren's love-life…"

"L-L-Love-Life?!" Ren stuttered embarrassed.

"What..?" Naofumi deadpanned, as his eye moved to the Sword Hero who looked ready to find a hole to hide.

"...yeah, and then Motoyasu happened…" Ryou finished waving his hand in the direction of the Spear Hero, who seemed out of commission lying on the ground, though there was a distinct lack of damage save for a few singed marks.

_Guess she went easy on him__…_ Ryou noted, and as amusing as the whole ordeal had been, he did wonder what would have happen to Motoyasu if Quartz hadn't hold back.

The Shield Hero pressed his chin further in his palm looking somewhat bored, or maybe tired, "You don't need to say anymore... I completely understand…"

_I don__'t know if it's sad or funny that you can explain everything by summarizing it with those words… _Ryou contemplated as he rubbed his face, though he furrowed them a moment later as he saw Filo shaking slightly, her feathers ruffling.

"That..." She murmured lowly, before her head snapped upwards."...it's a dragon!" She declared as she exploded in motion.

Ryou's eyes widened in fear as he jumped to the side to avoid being trampled by a raging Filorial Queen, however, the sudden movement sent the wagon drifting, and he didn't even have time to blink before it slammed against his body.

"Gahh!" The Bow Hero cried out, as he grabbed on to the side of the carriage.

A familiar sound of displaced air reached his hears followed by a roar, and suddenly the smell of something burning reached his nostrils.

"Naofumi-sama! The roof is on fire!" Another familiar voice shriek from within the vehicle, as the world around the Bow Hero spun.

"Goddammit Filo! I order you to stop!" The command was followed by a high-pitch screech of pain that brought the entire thing to a halt.

Taking a few heavy breaths, Ryou closed his eyes, as everything around him was still spinning, before lowering his feet to the ground, or tried to. Opening his eyes they widen in fear, realizing there was nothing under him.

"Shit!" He cursed as he gripped the side of the wagon tightly. Under him there was nothing but a very large drop with a shining lake at the bottom, and the carriage had stopped right at the ledge.

Another roar followed as something rammed the carriage, pushing it off the ledge followed by a chorus of panicking screams along with a yelp of pain.

"Fueeeeee! Ryou! Quartz-chan!" Rishia screamed as she dashed towards the ledge followed by Rifana, and Ren, who watched a bundle composed of a dragon whose tail was caught in the beak of one of the two filorial queens along with a flaming wagon as it plummet down the cliff before hitting the lake with a huge splash.

"Ohh my lord! Ryou! Quartz!" Rifana cried out as she crouched near the ledge, followed by an almost hysterical Rishia.

"Do we even take fall damage?" A voice contemplated from Ren's side.

"Don't know, never tried it." Ren shrugged.

"Should we go check on them?" Motoyasu asked rubbing his head as he watched the ripples on the surface of the lake.

"Are you actually worried about Naofumi?"

"Of course not! I'm worried about Quartz-chan, Raphtalia-chan, and Ryou too!" Motoyasu dennied heatedly.

_The order in which you mentioned them is quite telling. And didn't she just set you on fire? Are you seriously over it already?!_ Ren questioned, before his eyes moved towards the green-haired girl that seemed ready to burst in tears.

"Calm down," Ren ordered as he saw something rather small break the surface of the lake, followed by two other dots. "See they're fine."

"Fuee!"

"Ohh thank goodness…" Rifana breathed out with no small measure of relief.

_They could have just confirmed it in their H.U.D..._ Ren released a sigh, as he crossed his arms looking down the ledge.

Unknown to the Sword Hero, or anyone else, far above the clouds, a pair of great golden eyes narrowed slightly as they took in the new threat that had slaughter part of its flock. The creature knew that these newcomers were different than the rest of the humans that had come for them, but it would matter not, for he would retrieve what those cursed humans had taken from him, no matter how many he had to slaughter.

With that thought, a giant shadow slowly descended into the clouds, and towards the unsuspecting crowd.

* * *

Reaching the bank, Ryou crawled a little, before dropping on the white sand and rolling on his back, his chest heaving from exertion.

_How the hell am I even alive__…_ He wondered in silent disbelief. Movement somewhere to the side had his attention as he saw Naofumi crawling out of the water followed by Raphtalia before both slumped to the ground, tired but not looking any worse to wear.

"Quartz?!" He uttered and no sooner had he released those words, the surface of the lake broke, as two white feathered wings waved in the air sending waves across the lake, before a puff of smoke took place, revealing a confused if unharmed girl, that slowly swam in his direction.

"What about Filo and Sakura?" Raphtalia asked worriedly, as she watched the lake with trepidation before her attention moved to a trail of bubbles making their way towards them. Slowly something white and pink could be seen just under the surface, and a moment later the Filorial Queens surfaced, pulling a partial singed wagon leaking water everywhere on to the shore.

"Noooo! Filo's carriage!" The Filorial Queen cried as she reverted back into a form that Ryou was also familiar with.

"Sakura's carriage has drowned…" The other, pink-haired girl mumbled solemnly.

"My merchandise…" Naofumi murmured from their side.

"All of Filo's precious memories were tied to her carriage!" The blond girl cried, before her eyes were filled with anger, as her head snapped towards something behind Ryou.

"You stupid dragon! You're going to pay for what you did to Filo's carriage!" She shrieked as she launched herself at the white haired girl.

Quartz's eyes narrowed in aggravation as she too responded in kind, "You stupid birds are the ones who will pay for hurting Quartz's tail!"

"Shut up lizard brains!" FIlo cried out as the two girls begun what could only be considered a cat-fight, with scratching, hair-pulling, and small fists flying everywhere.

"No! You shut up you chicken head!"

"Filo is no chicken! Filo is Filo!"

"You're stupid as one, and fat too!"

"Filo is not fat! You are the fat one! You..! You ugly looking dragon!"

"I'm not ugly! You are… Guhh!" The small girl gagged as something grasped the back of her dress and pulled her back, and away from the Filorial Queen.

"Enough!" Ryou yelled as he dropped Quartz back on the ground with a glare.

"But Onii-shama…" She tried, but closed her mouth and shrank under the angry glare.

"But nothing! What the hell is wrong with you Quartz?! We could have died!" He shouted. He knew there was some bad blood between Dragons and Filorials, but there were limits.

"Not only that you also set their carriage on fire! With Raphtalia inside!" He continued, as the girl tried to look as small as possible under the Bow Hero's wrath.

Taking a breath, Ryou tried to calm himself, since his temper was getting the better of him, yet his eyes were still full of anger, "Take a moment to reflect on your actions."

"Aha! Stupid lizard is getting scold!" Filo gloated pointing a finger, before something crashed on top of her head, "Ouch!"

"Don't laugh at other people's misery!" Naofumi warned with a scowl.

"But Master is always doing it!" The small girl pointed out rubbing the top of her head.

"Do as I say not as I do," He ordered, before his eyes took on a bit of steel, "Besides you were the one who attacked first, so as punishment you are going to clean both the carriage and every single merchandise that's in there.

"Booo!"

"Do you want me to take you back to the Slave Traders tent?" The Shield Hero threatened, and Filo's hands flew to her face in horror.

"Noooo! Filo will clean! Filo will be good!" She cried out jumping towards the carriage.

"Quartz you are going to help her, and so help me, if I hear even a peep coming from you," Ryou warned pointing towards the carriage.

Head hanging low the small girl nodded, her feet dragging through the ground.

"Sakura go help them," Naofumi ordered.

"Okay…" The pink-haired Filoril agreed lazily as she fell in step with Quartz also dragging her feet through the ground.

_Sheshh... She__'s normally well behaved and I did wondered what would happen when they finally met... Guess I jinxed it because this was way over the top…_ He thought tiredly as he watched Filo, and Quartz lock gazes before looking away from each other with a pout.

"Ryou… Why is it that almost every time we met, some misfortune soon follows?" The dark-haired young man asked with a glare towards the Bow Hero, arms crossed.

Ryou's eyebrows furrowed slightly, "What? No it doesn't! There was only that time with the wolves, and the wolves again, and…" He trailed off under the Shield Hero's pointed glare.

_...and the second boss during the wave, and there was also the party at the Castle, though that would have happened even if I wasn't there__… Urghh…_ He recalled realizing that there seemed to be some truth to the Shield Hero's words.

"I guess you just have bad timing?" He ventured with a small shrug looking almost apologetic.

"How unlucky of me…" Naofumi drawled.

"I blame Rishia, she's the one misfortune follows!" Ryou decided with a nod earning a rather unimpressed look from Raphtalia.

"Really Ryou-sama..?"

"Hey don't look at me like that! Her words, not mine!" Ryou explained looking affronted.

"Whatever... " The Shield Hero mumbled, as his eyes moved towards his vehicle, "...so what came out of that egg of yours was a dragon huh…" He considered for a moment, "She looks just as much as an handful as Filo, but it's just my luck that you get something as cool as that, while I'm saddled with this KFC party…"

_...as cool as that__…_

Those words brought the Bow Hero to a very sudden pause. Those words were something that shouldn't have come out of Naofumi's mouth at all, and with a very pointed if somewhat apprehensive look his Status Window appeared in front of him, yet, his attention went for the timer on the corner, that displayed the time until the next wave.

He recognized then that if the time between waves hadn't changed, the wave would be occurring any day now, with that realization his eyes went to the Demi-human girl, who was looking confused as the Bow Hero assessed her from top to bottom, looking for something that wasn't there.

_There isn't a single burn on her..._

"Ryou-sama..?" Raphtalia ventured.

_No__…_ Abruptly his mouth felt very, very dry and he swallowed in a shaky manner.

"Naofumi… By chance did you happen to have an ill-fated encounter with a dragon a while ago?"

Naofumi's expression turned blank at the question, "Is that supposed to be a joke? Are you trying to be funny Ryou?"

"Just answer me!" Ryou almost pleaded, making the Shield Hero frown.

"You mean besides the one that knocked me off a cliff just a couple of minutes ago?" He asked sarcastically.

_Why?! How?! Everything happened as it should, even the whole seed tobacco, I heard the rumors about it, so how come something as crucial as he awaking the Curse Series changed?!_ Ryou cried almost desperately, then his eyes went to the top of the cliff, as another memory hit him.

"…besides, this time I'm sending support to help you if needed."

He recalled the Shadow Maid's words, and suddenly everything about the appearance of his fellow heroes made sense. He hadn't put too much stock in it since they never had much screen time, and it was never showed what they had been up during the time between the waves but Naofumi's appearance should have given him a major hint right off the bat.

_Don__'t tell me… That was all it took?! That fucking woman just royally screwed us all over! _Ryou screamed in his mind, then taking a sharp breath he tried to calm himself, but another far worse thought crossed his mind.

An image of a village besiege by a plague appeared in his mind, and he remembered vaguely there were already some graves back then. With that thought his face lost all color as cold sweat ran down his forehead and dread filled his being.

* * *

_Next Chapter: Into Oblivion Part 1_


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